GREENFIELD — Following months of contentious public debate since Noble Home LLC first proposed building 22 condominiums divided into multi-family homes on Stone Farm Lane, the construction design firm withdrew its application for a special permit without prejudice Thursday evening.
Josh Levine, an attorney representing Noble Home, made the announcement at a Zoning Board of Appeals meeting. He said the firm withdrew its application after hearing the concerns of abutters and plans to reapply in the future, though a date has not been set.
“The applicant would like to withdraw and reconsider the application,” Levine said, “both in how it is being presented and having further conversations, potentially, with the abutters. We’re generally going to regroup and start again.”
Pointing out that Noble Home’s original plan drew concerns over water and sewer connections, ZBA member Peter Wozniak suggested that the applicant discuss infrastructure connections before reapplying for a special permit.
Chair David Singer echoed Wozniak’s remarks, adding that the applicant should address “weak points” in its design plan, such as its sewer connection and its pump system, with city engineers.
“If they come back at some future date, communication between the city and the developer is key because I don’t think the infrastructure can handle any construction for what they can develop at that site,” Wozniak said. “This infrastructure is 60 years old and if it breaks down and they have to fix it, that’s going to impact the existing neighborhood.”
Valley Community Land Trust, a regional nonprofit that purchases and leases land for conservation and affordable housing, bought the 32-acre property for roughly $995,000 in the summer of 2024 before leasing portions to Noble Home and Valley Housing Co-op for development.
After the sale, Valley Housing Co-op co-founder Sara Brown, who would later become an at-large city councilor, announced plans to build housing on the land and Noble Home owner Noah Grunberg spoke to the Greenfield Recorder in October 2024 about preliminary design plans for the lot, bringing the proposed development into the public eye.
City Hall’s second-floor meeting room was packed for a ZBA meeting on Sept. 18, when more than 20 residents aired their views on the proposed development at Noble Home’s first special permit hearing. Since the applicant originally planned to construct multi-family housing across Rural Residential and Urban Residential zones, and offered only 50 of the 100 feet of frontage needed, the project requires a special permit. Grunberg planned to develop 1.5 acres of the property.
Since plans for a Stone Farm Lane development were first made public, the project has inspired controversy, with those in favor of the development arguing that it would provide the city with a much-needed addition to its housing stock, and those opposed expressing concerns that the site would pose a threat to the area’s wildlife and scenery and potentially overwhelm the city’s infrastructure.
After roughly two months of discussion, Conservation Commission members unanimously gave the project their blessing in September.
Grunberg could not be reached for comment on Friday regarding the withdrawal of his special permit application.
