Chief of Planning Kairos Shen said she would not make changes to Boston’s affordability requirements for new housing, which critics say have slowed down development.
Boston is a difficult place to develop housing: Chief of Planning Kairos Shen says that won’t change anytime soon. At a forum hosted by the MIT Center for Real Estate, Shen said she wouldn’t lower the affordability requirements in Boston that opponents say have slowed down production.
Gayla Cawley writes for the Boston Herald:
“It’s hard to develop here. It should be,” Shen said. “We’re developing good stuff, you know? You guys want us to lower our standards. Part of my job is to hold those standards and try to still make them work.”
Right now, the city requires Boston housing projects to make 20% of their units income-restricted, which opponents claim have made it more difficult for developers to obtain financing and start building. The Boston Herald reports that last month, Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn said, “Twenty percent of zero units is zero.”
Read the full story: Mayor Wu’s planning chief under fire for saying ‘it should be’ hard to build in Boston
Boston's 'sliver lots' could yield over 1,500 affordable homes
The city has identified over 500 vacant parcels suitable for infill housing.
Boston to Top City Libraries With Affordable Housing
Three public libraries will be rebuilt or renovated to include hundreds of affordable housing units.
After a Six-Year Struggle, Tenants in Boston’s Mattapan Neighborhood Win Permanent Affordability
When a new owner imposed sharp rent hikes in 2018, tenants organized and fought back. Now, more than 300 housing units will be affordable for the foreseeable future. Here’s how the tenants made it happen.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Chicago breaks ground on $3 billion megadevelopment
The new neighborhood, titled Foundry Park, will one day host 3,700 residences.
This MA town is drowning in its own sewage — and residents like it that way
Susan Murcott, a waste water expert, said if Carlisle didn't address their leaking sewage, the problem could turn “deadly.”
Feds to more closely scrutinize proposed Amtrak facility’s environmental impact
The Federal Railroad Administration had initially said the facility qualified for a less extensive environmental review.
Boston is hard to build housing in: its chief of planning wants to keep it that way
Chief of Planning Kairos Shen said she would not make changes to Boston’s affordability requirements for new housing, which critics say have slowed down development.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello