Housing Trust weighs payment-in-lieu recommendation for new Washington Street bank

WELLESLEY -- May 22, 2026, Wellesley Affordable Housing Trust takes up payment-in-lieu figure for new First-Citizens Bank branch. The trust convened remotely Friday to recommend a cash contribution for the 26 Washington Street commercial project under the town's inclusionary zoning bylaw. Chair Micah O'Neil told members the Planning Board had previously set the project's obligation at 0.30686 percent of a unit, reflecting that the development is "a completely commercial project." O'Neil flagged that the written memo contained "an extra zero in our recommended contribution rate" and began walking trustees through the bylaw-based calculation tying the fractional unit to a dollar figure. Trustees Kenneth C. Largess III, Michael Nilles, Holly Grace, Arthur Goldberg and Amy Leibowitz also attended.