[Massplanners] Multi family housing

[Ezra Haber Glenn]

I'm not aware of any rule against it, and you can pretty clearly work this through a table of allowed uses or dimensional requirements.  In theory we do something similar to this all the time when we prohibit "less intense/lower" uses (storage, parking lots) but allow more intense/higher ones (biotech, office); your idea is just doing the same thing relative to housing density.

In theory I could imagine a property owner claiming that you've taken all their property value, if the market won't bear the higher density. (At the extreme, imagine the case where you required a minimum of 1,000 units per acre skyscrapers — this would essentially be the same as a development ban.  But I suspect that is more an edge-case.)

The more problematic consideration is what if the market is not yet interested in building at that density? Instead of more housing, you may get none — but at least you'll maybe bank the land for future use? In general, this is a tricky aspect of zoning: it's reasonably good at preventing bad (or too much) development, but can't really compel good (or more) development.  (For that, you really need to look at incentives, public partnerships, etc.)

Ezra

--
Ezra Haber Glenn, AICP
Department of Urban Studies and Planning
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Ave., Room 7-346
Cambridge, MA 02139
eglenn at mit.edu
617.721.7131 (c)

 - on the web:
   http://dusp.mit.edu/people/ezra-glenn<http://dusp.mit.edu/peopl/ezra-glenn>
________________________________
From: MassPlanners <massplanners-bounces at masscptc.org> on behalf of Jeffrey Robert Levine via MassPlanners <massplanners at masscptc.org>
Sent: Monday, October 3, 2022 9:23:12 AM
To: Daniel Fortier <daniel.j.fortier at gmail.com>; Listserv (massplanners at masscptc.org) <massplanners at masscptc.org>
Subject: Re: [Massplanners] Multi family housing


I think if there is a sound and documented planning rationale, explaining the housing need and how it can only be met with minimum densities, it would be permissible. It should reference the LCP or HPP or similar document.



Curious as to others’ takes on this.



Jeff



Jeff Levine, AICP (he/him)

Lecturer in Housing, Community & Economic Development

Department of Urban Studies & Planning

Room 9-511

jrlevine at mit.edu<mailto:jrlevine at mit.edu>

Personal Zoom Room: https://mit.zoom.us/my/jeff.levine

@JLevineDUSP

(617) 253-3964

[MIT]







From: MassPlanners <massplanners-bounces at masscptc.org> On Behalf Of Daniel Fortier via MassPlanners
Sent: Sunday, October 2, 2022 11:01 PM
To: Listserv (massplanners at masscptc.org) <massplanners at masscptc.org>
Subject: [Massplanners] Multi family housing



Hope this is not going out more than once, but got two bounce backs...



Working on a Multifamily zoning overlay with a Select Board member, he wanted to know if we could actually establish a minimum number of units in a structure/project. We are thinking of a cap of 30 or 40 units per acre, but he would like to avoid someone coming in with tri-plex type projects and densities that are so low that we do not make a dent in our housing needs.



Thoughts?



Dan Fortier

Retired

Interim Dennis Planner


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