Town Receives State Grant for East Street Corridor Plan

The Healey-Driscoll Administration recently announced that the Town of Dedham was awarded a $50,000 Planning Assistance Grant through the Massachusetts Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) to begin work on the upcoming East Street Corridor Plan, a community visioning process for the southernmost stretch of East Street (from the Endicott Rotary to the Westwood town line). The plan will help the Town determine the zoning attributes worth preserving or changing along the corridor.

East Street serves as a key thoroughfare for cross-town connections, including access to Route 128/I-95 and two MBTA Commuter Rail stations. To achieve a vision for the future of East Street, zoning recommendations and design guidelines will be developed based on input from the public and a community advisory committee. The East Street Corridor Plan seeks to mirror the Bridge Street Corridor Plan that was completed in 2024.

This fall, the Planning Board will hire a consultant team to start the project and will appoint a nine-member East Street Corridor Plan Advisory Committee. The plan will include an analysis of existing conditions and a public engagement process, with the final draft to be submitted to the Planning Board for consideration. The Planning Board then has the opportunity to endorse the plan and potentially sponsor any zoning amendments based on recommendations that may come out of the plan, like they did at the Spring 2025 Town Meeting with the recommendations for Bridge Street.

The Advisory Committee will be comprised of elected officials and six (6) Dedham residents, students, business owners, and/or property owners, appointed by the Planning Board. Further information about applying to serve on the East Street Corridor Plan Advisory Committee will be shared in the coming weeks. The project is scheduled to be completed by Summer 2027.

For more information and to follow updates on the East Street Corridor Plan, visit: beheard.dedhamma.gov/east-street-corridor-plan

About Mass EEA Planning Assistance Grants

Planning Assistance Grants are part of the Commonwealth’s effort to encourage municipalities to implement land use regulations that are consistent with land conservation and development objectives including reduction of land, energy, and natural resource consumption, provision of sufficient and diverse housing, and mitigation of/preparation for climate change.

For more information on the Community Planning Grant Program, visit https://www.mass.gov/info-details/environment-climate-one-stop-eco-one-stop-grants-catalogue#eco-one-stop-overview.