I fully support the proposed Village Center Overlay District. This is the pragmatic thing to do and this is the time to do it. Trying to hang on to a fantasy past that doesn’t meet today’s needs is not only foolish, it is harmful. This means that I also support…
Posts published in “Zoning”
We are writing this letter to alert the voters of Newton of an effort to impersonate us to spread misinformation leading up to the upcoming November 7 municipal election. Our group, Newton for Everyone, is a coalition of civic, housing and climate activists, clergy, and local businesses supporting the proposed Village Center Overlay District…
Opponents of the proposed zoning often say the changes are too radical, creating too much change to our village centers. However, from the historical perspective, this proposal actually brings our villages closer to what they once were. They were denser, taller and teeming with life compared to today. This is…
On October 16, Ward 1 City Councilors Alison Leary and Maria Scibeli Greenberg, and Zoning and Planning (ZAP) Committee Chair Councilor Deb Crossley, docketed an item for the October 26 ZAP meeting to allow the current Nonantum VCOD plan to be removed from consideration. Instead, the plan would be referred…
Among organizations engaged in this year’s Village Center Zoning reform efforts is the Newton for Everyone Coalition, which was formed earlier this year to educate and support the City’s Village Center Zoning efforts. It currently includes these Newton organizations: Newton Interfaith Clergy for Housing Equity (NICHE), Uniting Citizens for Housing…
The proposed village-center rezoning reflects thoughtful compromise and tradeoffs. A core tradeoff: balancing intensity of multi-family residential development in existing commercial areas against a broad desire to minimize multi-family redevelopment, aka teardowns. City councilors Pam Wright and John Oliver (and others, including like-minded candidates in contested races) have recently and…
Climate change is accelerating rapidly. Extreme heat is the deadliest natural hazard in the U.S. “Heat islands” in the built environment amplify average temperatures and extreme heat, especially near major highways. This affects every Newton neighborhood. The National Climate Assessment shows more flooding in the Northeast, where the most extreme storms are generating 27% more moisture…
On October 23, the Zoning and Planning Committee voted to approve the proposed amendments to the Zoning Ordinance to create a Village Center Overlay District. The item has been in discussion since early 2021, after the Committee’s review and discussion of proposed amendments to expand multi-family uses in residential zones…
The Zoning and Planning Committee voted to hold all items (see Report and watch NewTV video): The following Amendments approved: The following Amendments that were rejected:
Various groups — church organizations, neighborhood organizations, and Area Councils — are hosting in various locations informational forums regarding the village center zoning proposal. Fig City News will endeavor to keep here an updated list of links to such forums that are recorded.