Newburyport Council Approves Emergency Snow Parking, Advances Courts-and-Lanes Zoning Amendment

NEWBURYPORT -- January 20, 2026, Newburyport City Council approves emergency snow parking expansion and advances a courts-and-lanes zoning amendment in its first meeting of the new term. The council voted unanimously to add approximately 12 spaces at the 115 Water Street wastewater treatment facility to the city's snow emergency parking program after the Brown School lot, long used for overflow parking, became unavailable due to ongoing construction. Mayor Sean Reardon announced a $1.49 million Seaport Economic Council grant for the boardwalk rehabilitation project, which, combined with $50,000 from the Waterfront Trust and $285,000 in Community Preservation Act funds, is expected to fully cover the project's costs; he also said just over $1 million in federal PFAS mitigation funding has cleared the House and is expected to move through the Senate in February. Four Arlington Street residents urged council support for Ordinance 213, a proposed zoning amendment that would give the Planning Board broader discretion over setbacks in courts-and-lanes subdivisions, with all four citing a disputed four-house infill project at 18 Highland Avenue; the ordinance was referred to the Planning and Development Committee with committee-of-the-whole status.