News

AHOD Subcommittee Monday, Upcoming Warrant Articles for Town Meeting, and Comp Planning

Meetings of Interest This Week 

It appears to be a light week, with both meetings of interest on Monday:

The Affordable Housing Overlay District (AHOD) Study Subcommittee will be on Monday, September 30, via Zoom, at 7:30-9:00 pm (Zoom link here, no registration required). The meeting will include review of the Affordable Housing Overlay District Final Report by RKG Associates, including their financial model and policy implications. You can find all the Committee’s background documentation and work to date in their AHOD Study Committee Rolling Meeting Agendas and Minutes.

The Chestnut Hill Commercial Area Study Advisory Group will also be holding a hybrid meeting on Monday, September 30 at 6:30pm, at the Brookline Town Hall, room 103 and on Zoom (register here) for a presentation of a “peer review” of City Realty’s Chestnut Hill Office Park (1280-1330 Boylston St) redevelopment proposal. The project webpage is here; the agenda is here.

Help Us Pass Pro-Housing Warrant Articles!

The next few weeks feature a packed agenda of meetings as various Town boards will be considering key Warrant Articles for the upcoming Fall Town meeting, including Warrant Article 9, which allows a third home in our existing two-family “T” districts (sometimes referred to as “Plus One”). The first hearing takes place October 7, before the Economic Development Advisory Board (EDAB) (link not yet posted). WA 9 is being cosponsored by several B4E Board Members (including your humble editor), with others, as a modest attempt to allow the addition of some smaller housing units through the conversion of attics and basements or other reconfigurations of existing 2-family homes to create a third unit. This rezoning does not allow  any increase in height, setbacks, or floor area ratio (FAR), so there will be minimal change to the fabric of our existing neighborhoods. We think this will benefit existing homeowners and help the Town by adding new homes on a modest scale.

We need your help! Sign up here to help us pass pro-housing Warrant Articles this fall. We need people to speak at meetings, attend meetings without speaking, and write letters to key decision-makers.

This is a very important way to make sure that our policy priorities can move forward during this fall’s Town Meeting, and we need your help to make it happen.

We will also be watching and supporting Warrant Article 15, drafted by the Planning Department, which updates Brookline’s Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Bylaw to meet the new requirements of state law implemented by Governor Healey’s Affordable Homes Act approved this past summer; one key date for WA 15 will be a joint Planning Board/Housing Advisory Board hearing on October 22.

Upcoming Housing Events

The Comprehensive Planning Process is getting underway with an In-Person Visioning Workshop on Wednesday, October 9, 7:00-9:00 pm at the Brookline High School, 22 Tappen Street. For those who can’t attend in person, there will also be a Virtual Visioning Workshop the next day on Thursday, October 10, 12:10-12:50 pm, with an optional discussion until 1:15 pm. The Town hasn’t published the Zoom link yet but it will likely be available soon on the Brookline Comprehensive Plan Website, where you can also find more information about the overall planning process.

Don’t forget to mark your calendar for the Brookline CDC Annual Community Gala on Saturday, October 19, 2024 from 6:30-10:00 pm at the Punch Bowl Restaurant at the Hilton Garden Inn. BCDC will be celebrating the significant contributions residents are making in solving real-world affordable housing problems, connecting communities, and improving peoples’ lives. The gala is their chance to say thank you and help create a financial basis to do even more work. We encourage everyone to support this important community organization, and attend what is sure to be a fun evening. Learn more about sponsorship opportunities or purchase your ticket here.

What We’re Reading

For policy wonks, we recommend this terrific blog, Upzone Update, a biweekly newsletter from Boston Indicators and Amy Dain that tracks and analyzes MBTA Communities Act compliance efforts across the state. This week, my former law partner Henry Korman explains “Who’s In Charge of Zoning”  (spoiler alert: it’s the state, which delegates its zoning authority by law to localities, but retains the right to step in when necessary for the good of the entire Commonwealth).

Finally, we wish all who celebrate Rosh Hashanah (which begins Wednesday evening, and continues on Thursday and Friday) a New Year filled with Good Health, Joy, Peace and Justice!