In November, Massachusetts reached a major milestone in the MBTA Communities implementation process, providing an opportunity to celebrate and reflect on the legislation's successes. This past week, the 100th community in Massachusetts approved compliant rezoning! After numerous community meetings, countless revisions, council and town meeting votes, and tireless efforts to provide residents with accurate information amidst widespread misinformation, we have achieved approved plans in well over half of the communities affected by the new zoning law.
This series will celebrate some (it won't be exhaustive, so apologies in advance for anyone I overlook) of those planners, advocates, volunteer board members, and local communities. These unsung heroes are working not only to help Massachusetts address its housing crisis but also to seize the opportunity to improve their own communities for current and future residents.
Watertown: Downtown Housing Density & Pedestrian Priority
In what may be one of the brightest stories from the compliance plans produced surrounding MBTA Communities, Watertown took this opportunity to not only rezone for new housing in Watertown Square, but to "reclaim" the Square from through traffic and reclaim The Square's sense of place. Their process took a broader place-based approach to improvements that better support area residents and businesses, prioritizing people over through traffic by reclaiming nearly 3.4 acres of space for pedestrians, cyclists and new waterfront greenspace. This plan also goes above and beyond the 1,700 units that Watertown was required to include by MBTA Communities in it’s “zoned capacity” and creates a zoning framework that could allow for nearly 4,000 units of housing in and around Watertown Square. (note 'zoned capacity' numbers will never come close being achieved in most communities due to physical and economic conditions on the ground)
As Watertown’s City Manager George Proakis puts it, the city’s approach to this planning process was an opportunity to ‘take back’ Watertown Square for Watertown again. To return it to a bustling civic, social and economic hub of the Community again. “The plan we put forth is based completely on one thing – returning the Square to a place where Watertown residents both present and future can shop and meet-up with neighbors. Why should we let the people who want to get from Wayland to Cambridge determine the decisions of what we do in our downtown? This is your city, your Square, your downtown. We can stop pandering to the cut through traffic. There is nothing radical about trying to take back your downtown.”
Encouraging New Infill Housing Production
Watertown's strategy was to zone for the enhancement of Watertown Square, rather than merely fulfilling statutory requirements. The massing and dimensional guidelines aim to create harmony with the square by centering the most density in the core of the Square while gradually stepping down to the adjacent lower density neighborhoods. Ultimately, their process resulted in a "zoned capacity" of nearly 4,000 units, significantly exceeding the 1,700 units mandated by MBTA Communities. The eased dimensional standards around Watertown Square facilitate more by-right development (as mandated by MBTA Communities) and offer a more efficient, lower-risk process for potential developers, while still preserving a minimal site plan review process for the Planning Board.
A significant zoning requirement that often acts as an expensive and frequently needless obstacle to housing development in numerous communities is the imposition of arbitrary minimum parking requirements. Exterior parking can add $20,000- $30,000 to the cost to build a unit of housing while underground parking can easily reach an extra $100,000 per unit. In many cases, these requirements not only ruin building designs, but make housing not a financially viable proposition and these needed infill projects don't happen. Watertown's plan includes a reduction in parking requirements, setting a minimum of 0.5 parking spaces per unit and a maximum of 1 space per unit. This aligns with the broader goals of the Watertown Square plan of promoting a human-scale, pedestrian-friendly environment in the Square, prioritizing travel modes other than automobiles.
Housing For All Watertown
In an effort to counter decades of pervasive NIMBYism given far too much deference in many Massachusetts communities, local pro-housing organizations have formed in cities and towns across the Commonwealth. Following their tagline "Bringing residents together to address the housing crisis in Watertown" the newly formed Housing For All Watertown was instrumental in engaging a broad group of stakeholders to be a part of the planning process and serve as a strong local group of supporters engaging in an effort to educate the broader public on the importance of these reforms and bring new housing options to Watertown. HAW was supported through the organizing efforts of Abundant Housing Massachusetts, a statewide pro-housing advocacy group of which I'm lucky enough to be on the board. If you're in Watertown, definitely sign up to get their updates and find out how to get involved in future work by HAW.
This series will continue over the coming months. If you'd like to nominate a community to be included please shoot me a note at Jonathan@remainplaces.com.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Jonathan Berk is an urbanist and advocate who’s focused his career on building and advocating for walkable communities with vibrant public spaces, abundant housing choices and robust local small business communities. As the Founder of re:MAIN, he's working to accelerate the growth and expansion of walkable neighborhoods, with abundant housing options, through innovative, action-oriented programs. Jonathan@remainplaces.com
Comentários