Researcher: ADUs Hobbled by Zoning ‘Puzzle No One Can Comprehend’
Massachusetts’ accessory dwelling unit success story is being stymied by inconsistent municipal regulations, a new report from The Boston Foundation argues.
BXP Brings Ray of Hope to Suburban Boston Housing Production
Between office parks it owns in Waltham, Weston and Lexington, the office mega-landlord now has plans to add around 2,300 new homes in the western Route 128 corridor.
MBTA Communities Will Fall Short. But Without It, Bigger Reforms Couldn’t Happen
My research shows the MBTA Communities zoning law will fall short of what’s needed to build enough homes in Massachusetts. But it’s set the stage for further reforms.
MBTA Communities Law’s Upshot: Smaller Projects, Far from Stations
Urban planners’ visions of a high-density housing boom steps from rapid transit service haven’t materialized five years after the adoption of Massachusetts’ MBTA Communities zoning law.
What’s Next After MBTA Communities?
If you follow housing policy, you know Amy Dain. The longtime freelance public policy researcher recently joined Boston Indicators to build on her research into the state’s housing production struggles.
Infrastructure Used to Raise ‘Significant Hurdles’ for Housing
Officials in some Boston suburbs are turning to water and sewer infrastructure in their quest to obey the letter, but not necessarily the spirit, of the MBTA Communities law.
Lawmakers Say They Meant for MBTA Communities Law to Have Teeth
What legislators meant to include in the MBTA Communities Act – requiring 177 mostly Eastern Massachusetts cities and towns near public transit to zone for a district of reasonable size where multifamily housing is allowed by right – has dredged up an age-old fight over local versus state power.
Some Suburbs Roll Out YIMBY Welcome Mats
Leaders in Watertown, Needham and elsewhere are looking to go above and beyond the call of the MBTA Communities law even as those in other towns are making headlines with their resistance.
Research Finds Apartment Bans’ Racist Roots
A look back at 100 years of land-use history in Greater Boston raises questions about how much progress the state can make if Beacon Hill continues its extreme deference to local control over certain housing issues.
Report Seeks Zoning Roots of Boston Segregation
A prominent researcher who spent a year combing through archived municipal planning documents, state reports and local media accounts of land-use debates in Greater Boston says it’s clear many suburban areas have used zoning as a tool to exclude for over 100 years.
Can Upzoning Newton Catalyze Housing Equality in Greater Boston?
With the racial inequality now front and center, advocates in Newton are pushing for more diverse, denser housing to replace much of the region’s single-family stock as one way to help close the Black-white homeownership gap. But hurdles exist for the private sector to meet the need for lower-priced homes.
Housing Mega-Investments Better Spent on Rezoning Push, Transit
Last week, Google announced to some acclaim it would spend $1 billion to build 15,000 market-rate and 5,000 affordable homes in the housing-starved San Francisco Bay area. Before any like-minded Massachusetts actors get a similar idea, we suggest a better use of that money would be helping efforts to modernize our mass transit and suburban zoning laws.
Landmark Report Shows State Needs Multifamily Zoning Requirements
A central, troubling theme emerges from the Dain report on Greater Boston multifamily land use policies: Land use decisions and plans in many towns and cities have a tenuous relationship with reality.
Report Details ‘Paper Wall’ of Zoning Blocking Multifamily Building in MA
A landmark report that, for the first time surveyed the 100 cities and towns surrounding Boston, details the many ways municipalities attempt to block or restrict multifamily housing.
