What's Happening Around the MBTA Communities Act in the State
(Excerpt from Newton for Everyone April 2024 newsletter)
The MBTA Communities Act is an opportunity for cities like ours with access to transit to welcome new housing. It affects 177 municipalities in the region and most are working on developing or have already passed zoning designed to reach the stated goals. (Chart as of 4/10/24)
Just because we have zoned for housing doesn't mean doesn't mean it'll get built. As Luc Schuster points out in Commonwealth Beacon, the rezoning is just a single step in the right direction, even if it may be slow to happen.
Still, for many municipalities around the Commonwealth, this act provided the impetus needed to kickstart zoning changes that, we hope, will result in more homes for more people. Here in Newton the city council approved an overlay district and while it's not everything that housing advocates hoped for, it's a step in the right direction.
Besides Newton, the big story has been Milton's vote and ongoing battle. Adrian Walker writes in the Globe that the state can't let Milton just flout a law, as that would undermine state laws overall. Attorney General Andrea Campbell has already taken action, even as other communities are making noise about rejecting the law. He sums up the state's housing battles this way:
But housing has always been an issue fraught with controversy — the original, ultimate NIMBY issue. No one ever says they oppose affordable housing, or more housing for families, or new housing that will attract new neighbors who don’t look like them. But cities and towns have a long well-documented history of insisting such housing belongs somewhere else.
Why is this necessary? For one, housing has grown so expensive that Boston risks losing a quarter of our younger population. That's why even the Boston Business Journal Editorial Page is getting behind the MBTA Communities Act. The editors write "Simply put, there are not enough workers who can afford to live near the businesses that desperately need them. That means businesses must become more vocal in the conversations taking place in their towns and advocate for the passage of zoning plans to alleviate their worker shortage."
As a community we need to keep an eye on this and ensure that the changes lead to results.
