Greetings, everyone. As temperatures are finally rising, melting snow will create a mess, but also an opportunity. Perhaps the same can be said about preparations for the spring Town election and Town Meeting. On Friday, the Select Board signed the Warrant that sets the agenda for Town Meeting. And yet, the agenda is not complete: this Tuesday, the Select Board may declare a “special town meeting” to be held within the regular Town Meeting. That is because plans for the Chestnut Hill Commercial Area were not completed in time for the regular warrant. The Select Board needs that extra time to prepare these very important Warrant Articles that establish an overlay zoning district and extract binding financial commitments from the developer of the former Chestnut Hill Office Park.
Confusing? Think of it as melting snow: soon it will all be one stream of water, to be filtered through Town Meeting in late May. We’ll let you know more as the snow melts.
Meanwhile, the main Warrant is here. There are three zoning proposals:
- WA14 updates our bylaw for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) to conform to state law and open the way for more to be constructed.
- WA15 expands the range of new housing projects able to make a Cash in Lieu of Units Payment to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund instead of providing units on-site. This weakens the case for fewer larger (more expensive) homes in a new building, as opposed to more homes of more modest size.
- WA16 liberalizes zoning in order to allow the construction of an apartment building on the parking lot at 26 Pleasant Street, across from the Coolidge Corner library.
Brookline for Everyone will weigh in on each of them in the coming weeks.
Affordable Housing 101
It’s a surprisingly quiet week for housing-related meetings in town. If you have time to bone up on some of the basics, though, we recommend a program from the Boston-based Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association. CHAPA’s Municipal Engagement Initiative holds an “Affordable Housing 101” training on Tuesday March 10th, 6:30 to 8pm, on Zoom. You can register here.
This free training session offers a primer for anyone who wants to learn more about how affordable housing is produced, funded, and preserved in Massachusetts. Topics include: Definitions of “Affordable Housing”; Debunking housing myths; Inclusionary Zoning; Community Preservation Act; Low Income Housing Tax Credit; Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act; MBTA Communities Law; Transfer Fee; and Opportunities for Advocacy.
(This session is not intended to help individuals find affordable housing for themselves or their families. You can find affordable rental opportunities through the Housing Navigator and affordable homeownership opportunities through My Mass Home.)
Last chance (really!): Comprehensive Plan Survey
The Town has extended the deadline to midnight on Sunday (today! – link here). If you only have two minutes, answer the questions at the beginning about Brookline’s overall goals, and skip the rest. If you believe Brookline needs more homes at all price points — particularly mixed-use, transit-oriented development that supports fiscal stability, strong schools, vibrant business districts, and climate goals — let the Town know. Now!
B4E Book Club meets on March 26
Our next B4E Book Club will meet on Thursday, March 26, from 7:00-8:00 at Brookline High School (MLK Room) (register here) to discuss Henry Grabar’s Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World (available at Brookline Booksmith and elsewhere). If you haven’t thought much about how parking shapes cities and complicates housing construction, you will learn a great deal, and not know whether to laugh or cry. We will use the book to frame discussions about current Brookline projects like the proposed apartment building at 26 Pleasant Street, the Centre Street Lots project, and the Chestnut Hill Commercial Area. Sign up here!
What else we’re reading this week
The always helpful Greg Reibman of the Charles River Regional Chamber of Commerce plunges us into a bitter fight in Wellesley over a choice between 180 new homes and, yes, an underused five-acre parking lot. Which would provide the greater benefit? Sadly, it doesn’t seem to be an easy decision for our neighboring town. (For another take on the project, here is the Globe.) We think “Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World” offers insight into why opposition to saying yes to replacing a parking lot with new homes for new neighbors often uses the same arguments.
Thanks, and have a great week,
Brian Ladd, for Brookline for Everyone