By Michael Parker on Posted in Affordable Housing,ZoningGovernor Baker recently announced a proposal to change state zoning laws to make it easier to build more housing units state-wide. The Governor’s goal is to add 135,000 housing units by 2025. To do so, he has introduced legislation that will allow municipalities to adopt certain changes to local zoning by a majority vote, instead of… Continue Reading
By Michael Parker on Posted in Affordable HousingThe Trump administration’s plan to lower corporate tax rates has created uncertainty in the affordable housing market by devaluing low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC). LIHTC devaluation is casting a chilling effect on the construction of affordable housing units nationally, including a Jamaica Plain project currently under construction. The LIHTC program, a widely utilized $8 billion… Continue Reading
By Donald Pinto on Posted in Affordable Housing,ZoningOn April 25, 2014, the Boston Bar Association will host a lunch program entitled “The (Slow) Rise and (Sudden) Fall of the Chapter 40B Municipal Planning Defense.” This program is jointly sponsored by the BBA’s Land Use and Development Committee (of which MLUM author Johanna Schneider is co-chair) and its Affordable Housing Committee. The guest speaker… Continue Reading
By Donald Pinto on Posted in Affordable Housing,UncategorizedI’m pleased to report that Governor Deval Patrick has appointed my colleague Kurt James, a director in Rackemann’s Real Estate Department, to a five-year term on the Marblehead Housing Authority Board of Commissioners. Kurt has 25 years of experience in real estate development and finance with a particular focus on affordable housing, so he’ll be a great asset… Continue Reading
By Michael Parker on Posted in Affordable Housing,Boston DevelopmentEfforts to promote affordable housing in Boston are starting to sound like potato chip marketing, boasting “40% less fat” for a bag of chips that’s actually 40% smaller. The Boston Redevelopment Authority is now authorizing apartment units as small as 450 square feet within one mile of public transit stops. The problem, according to Boston’s chief planner, is… Continue Reading
By Donald Pinto on Posted in Affordable Housing,Legislation,Policy,Subdivision Control,ZoningHere’s the full text of Massachusetts House Bill H.1859, entitled “An Act Promoting the Planning and Development of Sustainable Communities,” which is presently before the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government. I’ll be digging into this jam-packed bill over the next few weeks and posting my thoughts on some of its key provisions. I invite our regular MLUM readers and others… Continue Reading
By Donald Pinto on Posted in Affordable HousingThe Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) recently turned its attention back to affordable housing under the state’s comprehensive permit law, M.G.L. c. 40B, §§ 20-23 (Chapter 40B). Since a high point in 2008, when it decided four Chapter 40B cases, the SJC has been relatively quiet on this subject. Quiet, that is, until the past few weeks, when the… Continue Reading
By Donald Pinto on Posted in Affordable Housing,ZoningThe Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) today issued its decision in Zoning Board of Appeals of Lunenburg v. Housing Appeals Committee. This decision affirms a decision of the Housing Appeals Committee (HAC) that overturned the Lunenburg Zoning Board of Appeals’ denial of a comprehensive permit for a 146-unit condominium project. Among the topics the SJC addresses are whether non-subsidized affordable housing counts toward… Continue Reading
By Richard Gallogly on Posted in Affordable HousingIn a recent unpublished decision in Zoning Board of Appeals of Brookline v. Housing Appeals Committee (pdf), an Appeals Court panel rejected the position of the state’s Housing Appeals Committee (HAC) that, once HAC determines that a permit condition renders a project uneconomic, it has free reign to strike or modify any condition imposed by the local board of appeals – including… Continue Reading
By Robert Foster on Posted in Affordable Housing,LegislationMassachusetts voters yesterday rejected Question 2, the ballot question that proposed to repeal the state’s affordable housing statute, known as Chapter 40B. The final tally was 58% against repeal and 42% in favor, a pretty decisive outcome. What’s interesting is the town-by-town results, shown here. It makes sense that most of the cities voted against repeal. … Continue Reading
By Richard Gallogly on Posted in Affordable HousingRather than deny a comprehensive permit outright, zoning boards increasingly have been granting comprehensive permits subject to numerous, and sometimes onerous, conditions. Generally, developers have been able to strike such conditions only if they render the project uneconomic. Occasionally, the Housing Appeals Committee has removed conditions that were overtly improper. In its September 2, 2010 decision in… Continue Reading
