Housing Headlines

SOUTHBOROUGH --- By a vote of 281 to 273, Southborough voters approved an article to amend the zoning bylaw to include the MBTA Communities Overlay Districts (MCOD) during Town Meeting on Sept. 30. Planning Board member Marnie Hoolahan said 90 percent of the housing inventory is single-family homes. The average selling price is $1.1 million. “We don’t have a lot of diversity [in the housing inventory]. We don’t have townhouses, condominiums, condos, apartments. There’s really no place to downsize,” she said.

WESTWOOD --- Construction has begun on a 160-unit residential development in Westwood, one of the first multifamily projects to break ground in zoning approved under the MBTA Communities law. Petruzziello Properties, a subsidiary of Dedham-based Supreme Development, began foundation work earlier this month for the first building at The Block at 22 Everett St. The 22 Everett project includes 12,000 square feet of commercial and retail space. Of the 160 residential units, 15% are income restricted.

MARBLEHEAD --- Residents shot down new zoning rules that would make it easier to build multifamily housing and comply with the state’s MBTA Communities law. Applause erupted as Town Meeting rejected Article 36 on a 377-410 vote. In doing so, Marblehead pushed back against the state’s Dec. 31 deadline to adopt zoning changes under the MBTA Communities Act. Finance Director Aleesha Benjamin spoke at length about state grants Marblehead could lose by voting no.

BOSTON --- As some communities push back on the MBTA Communities law, advocates say it's a critical step toward increasing development. Luc Schuster, executive director of the Boston Indicators Research Center at the Boston Foundation, argues everyone is making a bigger deal out of the law than is warranted. "The way the law is written, it only applies to a very small percentage of land area in any given city or town."

MILTON --- Two weeks after town voters rejected a zoning plan that would have complied with the MBTA Communities Act, Attorney General Andrea Campbell filed a lawsuit against the town. Campbell’s suit asks a judge to affirm that MBTA Communities and the guidelines created by the state’s housing office are mandatory and that Milton be given three months to pass a compliant zoning district. If the town does not meet that deadline, the suit asks a judge to prevent the town from enforcing any existing local zoning rules that are inconsistent with the town’s MBTA Communities obligation.

WRENTHAM --- Town Select Board members are considering fighting a state law that requires communities near MBTA train stations to allow more affordable housing. Wrentham is considered an MBTA Adjacent Community. Select Board members are scheduled to vote Tuesday, February 27, on whether to sign and send letters opposing the law to Gov. Maura Healey and Wrentham state house representatives. Some local officials contend the law is an unfunded mandate.