Will MBTA-CA compliance create affordable housing in Brookline?
Compliance with the MBTA-CA requires changes to zoning. It is not a housing production plan, so it doesn’t automatically create any housing, affordable or not.
Brookline Town Meeting has passed a by-law amendment that at least 15% of new multi-family housing with more than 10 units must be affordable. This by-law amendment will go into effect after it has been approved by the Attorney General. Any housing created in the multi-family zoning district must comply with requirement.
The Select Board has established housing goals for the town apart from MBTA-CA requirements. Those include increasing “the net amount of nonluxury housing suitable for all stages of life.” The Harvard Street zoning proposal and at least one solution developed by the MBTA-CA Multifamily Permitting Committee are expected to incentivize new multi-family housing with more than 10 units.
In combination, the by-law amendment and a solution to MBTA-CA compliance that incentivizes new multi-family housing at a variety of income levels will incentivize some affordable housing development.
Related Links
How do MBTA-CA Guidelines constrain Brookline’s ability to create affordable housing?
What goals does the town have alongside compliance with the MBTA-CA?
How many units of affordable housing will the Harvard Street zoning proposal lead to?
What goals did the Select Board establish for the MBTA-CA Multifamily Permitting?