Housing Headlines

FALMOUTH --- By a 4-0 vote that was followed by a round of applause from the 30 people in attendance, the Falmouth Zoning Board of appeals approved a Ch. 40B comprehensive land use permit for Habitat for Humanity's plan to build 10 single-family homes on a 5.5 acre site off Barrows Road. To be known as Willett Way, the development will feature seven three-bedroom homes and three two-bedroom homes. The land was purchased with $340,000 in Community Preservation Act funds.

HUDSON --- Local developer George Danis is proposing to knock down three industrial buildings in the town's Adaptive Re-Use Overlay District near downtown and constructing 270 one- and two-bedroom apartments and a 2,300 square foot market. Early reaction from residents and the planning board focused on the size of the project, given the overlay district only allows for 150 units.

HAMILTON --- The town's efforts to work with the nonprofit Harborlight Community Partners to build affordable housing along Longmeadow Way appears to be picking up momentum again, with the town's local affordable housing trust set to vote on a new agreement that would call for 48 to 100 units on the site, with the trust pledging up to $500,000 to support making the apartments affordable. The new agreement comes a month after the trust voted to grant Harborlights $300,000 to support an affordable housing development of up to 20 apartments for seniors on Willow St. Harborlight has maintained throughout its discussions that the financial feasibility of developing Willow St. depends on the nonprofit being able to develop housing elsewhere in town.

Working off a Washington Post analysis that rents have fallen for the highest earners while increasing for the poorest in several American cities, WBUR's Benjamin Swasey asked the real estate data firm Zillow for metro Boston numbers and found rents in Greater Boston have increased for everyone, but less so for the top tier of the market. Swasey found that the median rent in the most expensive third of the local market increased 20 percent from June 2011 to June 2018. For the bottom third, it's risen 27 percent. For the middle third, it's increased 32 percent.

BOSTON --- An overflow crowd came to Simmons College in the Fenway recently to hear Cabot, Cabot & Forbes' plans to replace a taxi garage and a second building on Kilmarnock and Queensberry streets with two eight-story buildings housing 443 residential units. Rather than include affordable units in the project, the developer will pay into a city affordable housing fund specifically to support the purchase of the 97-unit Newcastle/Sarnac Apartments in partnership with the Fenway Community Development Corp. This building is located .75 miles from the development site at 599 Columbus Ave.

PEABODY --- While celebrating the role the Community Preservation Act has played in raising the quality of life for many Peabody residents, Community Preservation Act Committee Chair Mike Schulze says much more needs to be done to use the funds for affordable housing. Since 2002, the city has used $13 million n CPA funds - $8.17 million for open space and recreation, $3.24 million on historic preservation and $1.67 million on housing. "We've got the money to spend for affordable housing, we need (it), we're looking to do it," Schulze told the city council, noting that the CPC has a $3 million balance. "We can't create the project, but we will bring the money."