New working group to tackle MBTA zoning mandate

By Mike Berger

With the creation of a new working task force, the Select Board on Tuesday took the first steps toward compliance with the state’s new zoning requirements for MBTA communities.

The new committee will be charged with drafting an action plan, which is due to the state by January 21, 2023. Appointees include new Town Administrator Charles Doody, Housing Coordinator Kevin Shea, interim Town Planner Gene Manning, and Building Commissioner Ed Walsh, along with representatives from the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals.

Under a newly created section of the Massachusetts Zoning Act, all municipalities that have MBTA service must have at least one zoning district of reasonable size near a transit station in which multifamily housing is permitted as of right with no age or family limitations.

Lisa Lopez, vice chair of the Select Board and head of the town’s Affordable Housing Trust, stressed that the new law mandates zoning changes and not housing production.

Ultimately, town meeting voters will have the final say on matters of zoning. However, MBTA communities that do not meet the requirements of the new law would risk a loss of eligibility for various state grant programs, including MassWorks, the Housing Choice Initiative, and the Local Capital Projects Fund.

Lopez said the exact location of the multifamily housing zones is dependent on the amount of developable land near transit stations, while density minimums depend on the community’s total housing inventory and which MBTA category it falls under (Canton is classified in the “commuter rail” category).

Lopez said Canton is well positioned to achieve compliance, especially with recent approvals for affordable housing units at the Paul Revere Heritage Site. In her opinion, Canton’s current zoning may already reach or exceed the minimum density requirements while portions of the town’s draft Housing Plan, already prepared by the Canton Affordable Housing Trust, can be used for the required action plan.

While the action plan is due by January, the actual zoning changes, according to Lopez, must be in place by December 31, 2024.

Currently, Canton’s required minimum multifamily capacity under the new state law is 1,490 units and the task force will determine if the town has already reached that number. The minimum land area for the multifamily zoning district for all MBTA communities is 50 acres.

In other news:

* Select Board Chair John Connolly plans to invite the two co-chairs of the Canton Community Preservation Committee to its next meeting to revisit the committee’s decision to “pause” the application process for Community Preservation Act funding. Connolly said he has gotten firm legal opinions indicating that the CCPC must accept new applications, and board member Tom Theodore said he thought the board had verbal commitments from at least two CCPC members who are willing to reconsider the decision and he wants to know why …

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