Sherman Briggs wants to try again to rezone Spring Street – but this time he wants the Planning Board’s help.

At the annual Town Meeting in May, residents voted to deny rezoning several plots on Spring Street from general business/limited industrial to residential. The rezoning was to precede an official permit request to build a condominium complex.

The condos would be comprised of mostly two and three bedroom units, all of which would have a master bedroom on the first floor to make it more appealing to the town’s older residents.

However, voters shot down the request, expressing concerns about the water and sewer systems.

Recently, Town Planner Gil Hilario reached out to Briggs about trying again. Briggs agreed, but wants more support from the Planning Board.

“If we get all the boards working together we can get there, but I’m all done practicing,” Briggs said. “I think the Planning Board has to help initiate getting the article on the Town Meeting floor.”

The Planning Board originally supported both the rezoning and the project, but some residents think that not enough was done at Town Meeting to explain why.

“The reason it got turned down was because it looked like it was a zoning change for one developer, and not what’s best for the town,” Margie Baldwin said. “It should be about why you think it’s valuable for the town as a whole.”

Dan Crete agreed, and said that he thinks the Planning Board should have done more marketing for the project.

“There was really no verbiage behind why you were supporting it or how it fits in with the Master Plan,” he said. “I was so frustrated at Town Meeting that we couldn’t articulate why the support was there. I think it’s very important for you as a board to be a bit more persuasive, perhaps, at Town Meeting.

Crete and the Planning Board agreed that the Master Plan, which will be voted on at the Oct. 23 Special Town Meeting, would be the best way to sell the rezone to residents.

“The Master Plan spells out the need for multi-family housing, so hopefully we have a better chance at spring Town Meeting,” Planning Board Chair Eileen Marum said. “We’ll have time to get things together and prepared.”

However, Briggs’ attorney Patricia McArdle pointed out that the item that would be up for vote at Town Meeting would be strictly a zoning change.

“Getting too much into the details makes it seems like [voters] are approving a project,” McArdle said.

Planning Board member Steve Kokkins agreed that the difference between the zoning change and the project was lost at Town Meeting.

“Thank you for making that distinction, which maybe wasn’t understood at Town Meeting,” he said. “But it wouldn’t hurt for the public to know that proposals have come forward, and that that type of project would be openly heard and debated in a normal manner.”

Board member Norm Hills agreed, adding that just because the zoning changes doesn’t give a developer to do whatever they please.

“They would have to come back to the Planning Board and get a special permit, which we can control,” he said. “People have to remember that.”

Ultimately the board agreed to continue to talk about getting an article to rezone the area on the docket for the annual Town Meeting.