AMHERST — A section of North Pleasant Street north of the University of Massachusetts campus, incorporating the Puffton Village, Presidential, Townehouse and Brandywine apartment complexes, will be examined by Planning Department staff as an appropriate area to significantly increase housing density.

With favorable views from members of the Planning Board at Wednesday’s meeting, Senior Planner Nate Malloy was directed to develop a possible overlay district that would allow developers to at least double or triple the number of the 650 existing apartments, permitted at a time when the town zoning allowed such developments.

Malloy said density could double by allowing buildings to rise higher than the current two- and three-story buildings. Through flexible parking and dimensional standards, Malloy said the number of apartments could triple, even without making the buildings much higher than they are.

Planning Board member Bruce Coldham said this is a good place to start discussing a new overlay district, as developers could build apartments two or three stories higher at the western end of the site, bordering the Route 116 highway.

“It solves the problem we’re trying to solve at the moment, which is primarily student housing,” Coldham said.

Planning Board member Jesse Mager said this would be a great way to increase density without changing the North Pleasant Street experience. The idea would be to maintain the height of buildings closer to the street, and then have denser and taller apartments farther away from the street’s single-family homes and the Black Walnut Inn.

Mager added that this would be an easier sell to the community than other areas of town where density might be sought. “I think it’s relatively simpler than the others,” Mager said.

Malloy showed information originally presented to the Zoning Subcommittee in 2013, when it was considering an overlay district for all apartments that would have changed standards and dimensions across town. Now, the focus is more limited.

“Is that something we think is appropriate here and what does that mean?” Malloy said.

On Monday, the Town Council will take up the Planning Board-recommended rezoning of University Drive that would allow more apartments and mixed-use buildings closer to the southern end of the UMass campus.

Another area being considered for denser residential development is East Amherst village center, with properties along Belchertown Road, such as Colonial Village and Alpine Commons. But the North Pleasant Street apartments are closer to UMass.

“I’m excited about putting density in here,” said Planning Board member Karin Winter. Winter said this is a good location to be without cars, there would not be too much resistance from those who live nearby, and larger and taller buildings can be explored, as well.

One note of caution came from Johanna Neumann, who said she is largely supportive of more density in already developed areas, but it gives her pause that the town would create an overlay featuring a gap. The Farview residential neighborhood of single-family, owner-occupied homes would not be included, meaning that the high-rise buildings on the UMass campus along Eastman Lane and Governors Drive would not connect to taller buildings at the apartment complexes.

“I feel like if we move forward here, if it manifests itself, we leapfrog density, rather than concentrating density,” Neumann said,

Mager said trying to overlay the Farview neighborhood, though, would be problematic and likely met with pushback.

The only member of the public to offer comment was Janet Keller of Pulpit Hill Road. Keller said the North Pleasant area is already congested with traffic at certain times of the day, and if the goal is 3,000 more units, that would be too many. Keller said she would prefer planners focus on densifying Belchertown Road.

Because the area of North Amherst has seen problems associated with the unsanctioned pre-St. Patrick’s Day party Blarney Blowout in recent years, and in the past the Hobart Hoedown party was held on Hobart Lane, Planning Board Chairman Doug Marshall suggested that Planning Department staff speak to Amherst Police about how adding residents would impact their workload.

Before crafting any proposal, Malloy said he would talk to both police and UMass officials.