Healey, Driscoll Endorse ‘Starter Homes’ Ballot Question
The campaign to legalize small-lot single family homes statewide picked up two high-profile backers Tuesday morning: Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll.
Driscoll Offers Support for YIMBY Legislation During State House Rally
Advocates for stronger state laws allowing more housing to be built got a boost Wednesday from the Healey administration, as Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll told a crowd gathered in front of the State House that local communities have to step up and be part of the solution.
Housing Report Card Gives Mass. ‘Incomplete’ Grade
Massachusetts is unlikely to meet the Healey administration’s goal for 220,000 new housing units’ completion by 2035, according to a new report analyzing the state of the residential real estate market.
Driscoll Cites Mass. as ‘Model’ at National Transit Conference
Before a national audience of transit leaders on Monday, Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll offered an optimistic rebranding of Massachusetts’ troubled public transit systems.
Who’s Got an ‘Abundance’ Agenda in Massachusetts?
Some top Democrats on Beacon Hill say they’re big fans of the book roiling the party’s intellectual circles with its critique of why blue states build too little housing.
Healey Admin Eying Policy Based on ‘Unlocking Housing Production’ Report
If Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll and Housing Secretary Ed Augustus had one message when speaking to real estate movers and shakers Tuesday morning in downtown Boston, it was “watch this space.”
State Leaders Celebrate Without a Victory
If political happy talk could be converted into housing units, the cost of a home wouldn’t be nearing $1 million in Greater Boston. But it’s a reality our state and local pols seem incapable of grasping.
75 Towns, Cities Now on Board with MBTA Communities Law
Days before attorneys representing Massachusetts state government and the town of Milton face off in a dispute over the MBTA Communities law, Gov. Maura Healey and Attorney General Andrea Campbell sought to spotlight the cities and towns that are taking the opposite tack.
LG: Lawmakers ‘Just Not There Yet’ on Eco Dev Agreement
While Gov. Maura Healey told reporters Tuesday that the Legislature is “getting things done,” Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll urged a group of municipal officials to put pressure on their lawmakers to wrap up work on the earmark-laden economic development bill that stalled out more than a month ago.
Lobbying Intensifies as Housing Bill Deadline Looms
Housing advocates and elected officials rallied Wednesday in support of a statewide policy to allow accessory dwelling units by right, and the state’s top housing official offered his “word on the street” about the timing of a major housing bill’s arrival in the House.
CHAPA Launches New Housing Coalition with Biz Groups
Throughout the pandemic, labor shortages and supply chain issues bedeviled Massachusetts businesses. But business leaders say the housing crisis in Massachusetts is now the major existential threat to the state’s competitiveness.
Transfer Tax Would Make Small Dent in Housing Needs
A proposed tax on high-value real estate transactions to pay for affordable housing would add an estimated 3,210 affordable homes in Massachusetts over five years, according to the governor’s administration – a drop in the bucket of the state’s 200,000 housing unit shortage.
Housing Debate Carries Tax Credit, Health Angles
Community development organizations that aim to...
Harvard Not the Only Winner from Feds’ Mass. Pike Money
A $335.4 million federal grant to rebuild a key section of the Mass. Pike and build a new transit hub in Allston will help unlock Harvard University’s plans for a big, new science and technology-focused neighborhood. But the school isn’t the only winner, experts say.
Augustus, Driscoll Tapped to Chart More Housing Reforms
Gov. Maura Healey is still waiting for the legislature to act on her big housing bill, but she paused Monday to swear in two panels of developers, municipal leaders and advocates Monday, charged with charting more housing production reforms.
MWRA-Like Agency Pitched to Oversee Harbor Resiliency
A former state senator is lobbying support for creation of a regional government agency to protect Greater Boston communities from projected future storm surges.
Realtors on Beacon Hill: Build More, Skip Rent Control
As renters and would-be homebuyers face an affordability crisis, a leading trade group for the people who facilitate home sales is eyeing new building projects as the solution.
State Grants for 1.6K Homes Announced
A huge batch of state grants for 27 different projects announced Thursday will see 1,597 affordable and mixed-income housing units built or preserved.
Driscoll: Housing Projects Could Start Now If Credits Were Available
Supporters of a housing development tax incentive have plenty of ideas to improve how and where it’s applied, but as lawmakers from post-industrial cities prepare to try again to make the program permanent and triple its annual cap, a think tank consultant cautioned them to “speak with one voice.”
Driscoll Hopes for ‘Quick’ Filling of Housing Post
Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll seemed to move up the timeline for hiring a new housing secretary Tuesday, telling local officials that the Healey administration is planning to fill the new post “in a quick manner” after it becomes “available” later this month.
