Redevelopment of Stow Acres Country Club by Harvard-based MCO & Associates will include 40 cottage-style rental homes. Image courtesy of MCO & Associates
A statewide ballot question designed to spur construction of smaller, more affordable single-family homes enjoys overwhelming support among registered voters, according to a new survey.
The survey sponsored by Abundant Housing MA found support for the so-called “starter home” ballot question overwhelming opposition by a 58-21 percent margin.
“People are desperate for solutions and they see this as one way to tackle it,” said Jesse Kanson-Benanav, executive director of Abundant Housing MA. “It alone won’t be a silver bullet, but it certainly will have some impact in opening up home ownership for young people, or helping seniors age in their community.”
Sponsored by housing researcher Andrew Mikula, the ballot question would legalize construction of single-family homes in residential zones on lots that are a minimum of 5,000 square feet and have public water and sewer service.
The legislation is designed to encourage construction of modest-sized homes in entry-level price ranges.
Some developers see a niche for smaller cottage-style homes, which typically are discouraged under the minimum lot size zoning in many suburbs.
In Stow, developer Mark O’Hagan of Harvard-based MCO & Associates received approval under the Chapter 40B affordable housing law in 2024 for 40 cottage-style rental homes on a portion of the Stow Acres Country Club property.
Support for the starter home question in the survey of 800 registered voters by YouGov crossed party lines, racial demographics and geography. Support was strongest in the Boston area and among Black voters. Some 50 percent of Republicans indicated a yes or “leaning yes” vote, compared with 33 percent planning to vote no or “leaning no.”
“This is a common-sense reform that just gets thecommonwealth to a place where it was 50 or 60 years ago, when we were building more moderately sized starter homes around the state,” Kanson-Benanav said.
The survey also confirmed previous polling by the pro-housing production group that the cost and availability of housing is the top issue in Massachusetts.
In the latest poll, conducted Feb. 13-24, 45 percent of respondents identified cost and availability of housing as the top issue. Health care costs and inflation ranked second and third, both at 30 percent.
The initiative is one of 11 ballot questions certified by Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin on Jan. 5. If the Legislature fails to act on them by May 5, petitioners need to collect another 12,429 signatures of registered voters to appear on the November ballot.
Source: Abundant Housing MA and YouGov
