There has been a lot of controversy over the data that has been presented regarding the impact that the proposed Village Center Overlay District (VCOD) would have on Newton’s housing production. Different sets of charts and numbers have been offered by the Planning Department, by Councilors Wright and Oliver, and by Councilors Crossley and Danberg. Fig City News has compared how these parties present facts that affect support or oppostion to the VCOD proposal.
1. Number of units that can be created under the VCOD
The Planning Department and proponents of the VCOD have explained that the proposed zoning is not a mandate to build but rather provides the opportunity to build up to a certain number of units within the proposed district. The calculation is based on a formula created by the state that estimates approximate numbers of units that could be built by-right. For Newton to be in compliance with the MBTA Communities Law, it needs to have zoning districts near transit that would allow the creation of at least 8,330 housing units by-right. Opponents argue that VCOD goes well beyond what is required and creates zoning in districts that include village centers, some which are not served by rail transit.
2. Measuring impact: Density vs. number of units
Councilors Wright and Oliver argue that density is the right measure to see where the most impact that VCOD would have. They further argue that, as proposed, there would be more density (using VC3 zoning) around Commuter Rail stations than Green Line stations. They have presented a graph that shows higher density around the Commuter Rail.
Councilors Crossley and Danberg issued this memo to the Council pointing out that the number of potential units is distributed roughly evenly between villages with Commuter Rail vs. Green Line stations, with 53% of units on the Green Line. They argue that density is the wrong metric. The larger villages have a wider variety and number of units spread over a larger area and appear less dense because there is large buffer of low-density zoning (MRT) included in those areas.
3. Number of units already permitted
Both the Planning Department and Councilor Wright appear to be in approximate alignment on the actual number of housing units that have been approved.
Councilor Wright argues that there are thousands of units that have been approved and more that are in the pipeline. The City’s Planning Department agrees. In January 2022 and June 2022, the department estimated there were 2,286 units that have been approved either by Special Permit or by Comprehensive Permit (Chapter 40B) since 2020, with more in the pipeline.
Using Councilor Wright’s list of projects (which include projects permitted as early as 2016), Fig City News assembled a table of projects that have been permitted by the City — some already built, some in the process of construction, and others yet to be built. The total number of units approved by special permit from this data set is 2,211 (not including the Golda Meir expansion), and the total number of units approved by Chapter 40B is 909, with approximately 521 units pending.
Some Councilors have argued that these numbers are not relevant as they cannot be counted toward MBTA compliance and are not in the village centers, while others — including the 9 Councilors who have been advocating for passage of only the MBTA-compliant zoning — argue that these must be considered as the City plans for growth.
The Council will meet on November 29 to discuss further amendments and the possible addition of Auburndale. The addition of Auburndale would not assist in meeting MBTA compliance, and it is not supported by 10 Auburndale businesses. It may, however, be a factor in securing state and federal funding for the long-awaited accessibility upgrades to the three Commuter Rail Stations, which is currently in the Design Development phase.
Ed. Note: We have revised this article in response to corrections from the City’s Planning Department.