Shrewsbury halts Green Street construction, orders full site stabilization by August

SHREWSBURY — July 21, 2026 — Shrewsbury Conservation Commission orders Pulte Homes to halt construction and stabilize all open slopes at its 33–69 Green Street multi-unit residential development before resuming any work. Commission member Ken told Pulte representatives at the July 21 meeting that "there is not one stitch of vegetation growing on that entire site" — a condition he said violated the project's approved construction-sequencing plan — after witnessing sediment-laden water washing across the road and into adjacent wetlands as recently as that morning. Conservation Agent Aleah said a second, broader enforcement order would be issued expanding on the original July 8 order, which had targeted failed perimeter silt controls, to now require full-site slope stabilization using hydroseeding and jute netting across all three open areas. Pulte representative Essek Petrie, appearing remotely, acknowledged the problems and requested flexibility for the agent to lift the stop-work order if progress is demonstrated before August 18; the commission declined, with Ken responding: "You should have done it and it should have been all set for this meeting, and you didn't." The commission also voted unanimously to approve an amended wetlands order for MassDOT's Route 20 widening project, expanding the mitigation area from 4,264 to 6,539 square feet, and continued the GoVenture Capital Group's mixed-use development hearing at 525 Hartford Turnpike pending a formal waiver list, stormwater recharge analysis, and a beaver management plan.