Housing Headlines

SHELBURNE --- In a move designed to help the town achieve its goal of having 10 percent of its housing supply be affordable, the planning board will present a zoning proposal that would reduce the minimum lot size in certain village districts from 20,000 square feet to 5,000 to 8,000 square feet.

DORCHESTER --- Dorchester Reporter news editor Jennifer Smith does a great job capturing the back and forth community meeting between Mayor Marty Walsh and organizers from Dorchester Not For Sale, the anti-displacement coalition that is advocating that 65 percent of new housing be affordable. Walsh responded that 65 percent is a great goal but there isn't a government funding source to achieve that level of affordability.

BOSTON --- The procession of new faces inside the Baker Administration's Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development is continuing with former Worcester chief development officer Tim McGourthy being named deputy secretary, replacing Carolyn Kirk, who is now the new executive director of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. In December, Mike Kennealy was named EOHED undersecretary, replacing Jay Ash.

FRAMINGHAM --- The planning board OK'd veteran developer Howard Fafard's design to develop a woodsy part of Framingham into four single-family house lots, a move that was done to freeze current zoning so that Fafard can continue to pursue developing the land into 70 apartments for adults over 55.

WEYMOUTH — The firm once lauded for its progress on the redevelopment of former South Weymouth Naval Air Station is on its way out, making it the third developer to fail at seeing the massive project through to fruition. Meanwhile, as the local governing board moved to terminate LStar, a group of current local LStar management officials are trying to put together financing so they can continue to lead the project without LStar principles Kyle Corkum or Steve Vining.

WESTON - Boston Properties is dropping plans to build 125 units of senior housing and add nearly 200,000 square feet of commercial space to a site it owns on Rte. 20 near the Waltham line. Board of Selectman Chair Harvey Boshart said it was his understanding Boston Properties decided not to go forward with the commercial part of the project due to "market conditions" and were less interested in the housing, but had included it to help the town reach its affordable housing goals.