MIDDLEBORO — With some frustration and reluctance, the Select Board agreed Monday to submit a plan to the state to show the town’s proposal to meet new, denser housing requirements.

The state has mandated that towns designated as “MBTA communities’’ should have at least one zoning district that allows multi-family housing as a right, which gives the town little say about potential requirements. The mandate requires housing developments consisting of at least 15 units per acre to be allowed within a half mile of the MBTA station at 161 South Main St.

The plan approved by the Select Board June 5 highlights land in the required area that could be zoned to allow the dense housing the state would require. Any potential zoning changes would have to be approved by Town Meeting voters by the end of 2024.

The plan puts the town in “interim compliance’’ with the state’s mandates. The specifics of the plan could be changed, Town Administrator James McGrail said.

The approval of the plan represents a change in approach for Middleboro, which has drawn statewide attention for its previous refusal to submit a plan. 

Middleboro officials in December rejected the call for an action plan, saying that the town  already had substantial multi-family housing and that adding more could harm the town’s rural character. Officials also had questioned the demands such housing could make on the infrastructure.

But since then, McGrail said, “a lot has happened’’ that could have a detrimental impact on Middleboro.

Approving an action plan, he said, would keep Middleboro from being “blackballed’’ and shut out of potential state grant money.

Originally, the state had said that non-compliance could make the town ineligible for only certain grants, which wouldn’t have made a significant impact. But since then, McGrail said, communication from the state has indicated that non-compliance would be “taken into consideration’’ when awarding all grants.

This would impact both municipal and private entities, he said. 

McGrail said he still believes the town has provided substantial amounts of housing. Middleboro, he said, has “done what it’s supposed to do’’ for decades by providing multi-family housing. Middleboro is “the least of the state’s problems when it comes to housing.’’

Select Board member Brian Giovanoni said the state is “using their clout so we can just cave and cower.’’ He noted that “we could always throw a tea party on the Nemasket.’’

“Holding money over our head’’ is “wrong,’’ he said.

Select Board Chair Mark Germain said he would like to fight but he has to look out for the entire community. “I do believe they’re going to punish our town.’’

Select Board member Neil Rosenthal said he suspects this is “just the beginning’’ of “more onerous regulations. I don’t like this one bit,’’ noting that Middleboro “didn’t have any say on where the T station was located.’’

Giovanoni suggested adding the term “unwilling acceptance’’ to the action plan. Before voting to approve the plan he added “God help us all.’’