Thank you to Councilor Marc Laredo for his recent questions to the City Council, as reported in Fig City News, regarding the zoning proposal. His thoughtful and thought-provoking questions raise many of the issues that the City has so far failed to address, despite similar feedback. He not only raises the…
Posts published in “Zoning”
Adding density, as legislated in the MBTA Communities Act and proposed by Newton, would transform the built environment in our village centers from New England village feel to Urban/City. It is unnecessary and does not address housing affordability. The Urban Institute has concluded that up-zoning does not lead to greater affordability.…
The Programs and Services Committee will hold a virtual (Zoom link) public hearing Thursday at 7PM (see Agenda) regarding a petition filed by Peter Harrington and other residents calling on the City Council to place a non-binding question on the November 7, 2023 municipal ballot. The proposed ballot question is…
On Friday, May 26th, the Newtonville Area Council (NAC) launched a survey soliciting citizen input as the City Council and Newton’s Planning Department develop new zoning rules for Newtonville’s village center. The NAC invites any resident who lives in or comes to Newtonville to participate in the survey. When completed,…
The Zoning & Planning Committee voted to hold the following (see Report and watch the NewTV video): The two items were discussed together and focused on version 2 of the draft text to accompany the draft maps presented at the April 24, 2023 Zoning and Planning meeting. The following four…
The Zoning and Planning Committee voted to approve the following (see Report and watch the video on NewTV): The Zoning & Planning Committee voted to hold the following: Both items were discussed together. Version 2 Draft Maps removed historic districts and all public property from overlay districts. Village Center 1 District…
The article Village Center Zoning Redesign, version 2.0 is inaccurate in several aspects. It gives the false impressive that the Newton Planning Department recommends new zoning that far exceeds the requirement of state law. The article states that the Planning Department Version 1.0 of new zoning maps would allow the…
On Friday, April 21, the Newton Planning and Development Department released its updated Village Center Zoning Redesign plan, Version 2.0, based on comments and concerns voiced at the City Council’s Zoning and Planning meetings. (NewTV’s video of the April 24 meeting) Among the changes from Version 1.0 to 2.0 is…
Recently we were guests on Ken Parker’s NewTV program, Common Ground, for a discussion regarding the proposed Village Center and MBTA-related zoning changes. (See NewTV’s video here.) We are sharing it here with you, as it offers a much-needed critique and additional photo-realistic illustrations of the actual impacts of the…
We have been following the city’s rezoning redesign efforts for the past few years with keen interest. On April 6, we presented at the Newton Highlands Area Council about 2 topics that we hear questions about regularly: Parking and The Fiscal Impact of New Developments on the City. We were…