Housing Headlines

WEYMOUTH --- In an attempt to gain more control over developer's trying to build multifamily housing with a Ch. 40B comprehensive land use permit, Weymouth is considering purchasing a 13-acre wooded site that it says would put its percentage of delevopable land used for affordable housing over 1.5 percent, which would give it 'safe harbor' from 40B applications. If the town were to pursue the other 'safe harbor' option - 10% of its housing being affordable - it would have to permit 536 units.

HUDSON --- Selectmen are poised to appoint a task force that will explore the potential of turning the former police station site into affordable housing. An initial feasibility study determined the property was suitable for between 33 and 45 units. As of the 2010 census, Hudson's supply of affordable housing is 11.3 percent, meaning it can reject proposals from developers seeking to build multifamily housing with a Ch. 40B comprehensive permit. That percentage is likely to dip after the 2020 census, giving the town incentive to add units before the next count.

MILTON --- The town has received three applications by developers to build mixed-income apartments, totaling 363 apartments. All three developers are applying to the town for a Ch. 40B comprehensive land use permit. The applications include two by Cambridge-based Comprehensive Land Holdings to build 120 apartments at 582 Blue Hill Ave. and 132 apartments at 648 Canton Ave. The other application was submitted by Joseph J. Corcoran Co. and the Falconi Cos. for a 111-apartment building at the corner of Adams Street and Granite Avenue in East Milton Square.

NEWTON ---- For the second time this year, the group that calls itself the Committee for Responsible Development has filed a complaint against Mayor Ruthanne Fuller for using city resources to indicate her support for the 800-unit Northland mixed-use project, which is set to go before voters in a special election on March 3. This time, the group, which is urging a no vote, is complaining that Fuller's statements about seeking state grant funds to address traffic issues is an effort to use her office to make the project more palatable to voters and should not be done so close to the vote. A spokesman for Fuller said the mayor is doing her job and is seeking funds to address concerns voiced by residents who live near the proposed development.

SALEM --- Mayor Kim Driscoll's administration is preparing to bring two housing-creation programs before the city council - a revised version of an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) ordinance that was rejected by City Council last year and an inclusionary zoning proposal that would require new developments of six units or more to include affordable units in the project. The revised ADU proposal is already getting negative reaction as two councilors say they will vote against it because the law threatens the character of single-family neighborhoods.

BRAINTREE --- The town's Zoning Board of Appeals voted not to grant a Ch. 40B comprehensive land use permit for a 70-unit proposal by The Holland Companies of Boston. According to the Patriot Ledger, the ZBA reasserted that it has "safe harbor" from 40B because 1.5 percent of its developable land is used for affordable housing (the state has ruled it doesn't) and also voiced concerns that the design would make it hard for firefighters to access the site. Meanwhile, a neighborhood group that has voiced concerns said it is not "anti-project" but encourages projects that maintain parameters of current zoning.