Planetizen Newswire
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Housing Choice
The Housing Choice initiative, one of the country's most sweeping planning and development reforms to date, was included in a large economic development package approved by the Massachusetts Legislature earlier this week.
Mass Live
As reported earlier this month, the Massachusetts Legislature is poised to approve historic statewide land use reforms that would preempt local control of residential development. Here's a detailed account of how the state arrived at this moment.
Shelterforce Magazine
After several failed attempts, Massachusetts Legislature is close to a breakthrough on the Housing Choice initiative proposed by Governor Baker as a tool for generating a lot of new housing supply in the state.
The Boston Globe
The eviction moratorium put into effect by the CARES Act, applying to residents in public housing authority and Housing Choice Voucher programs, is set to expire later this month.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
The key item on the housing agenda of Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker will have to wait until next year.
The Boston Globe
The Housing Choice Voucher program is intended to provide new opportunities for low-income Americans to live in higher-priced neighborhoods, but few recipients of vouchers are taking full advantage of those opportunities.
Rice Kinder Institute for Urban Research
The House Choice bill, supported by Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, failed to earn approval from the State Legislature this year.
WBUR
The city of Waltham, Massachusetts has added over 11,000 jobs since 2010, but only a few hundred homes. Developers see a prime opportunity, but city officials are reticent.
The Boston Globe
Not only does the plan promise more affordable housing, it’s also supposed to deliver “access to more upwardly mobile communities."
Next City
The state of Massachusetts has set a goal to add 135,000 new housing units over the next eight years. To achieve that goal, the state will provide incentives for cities that streamline development approval.
The Boston Globe
Emily Badger pulls particularly salient information from last week's Pew Research Center's report on political attitudes: liberals prefer the city while conservatives prefer small towns and rural areas.
The Washington Post - Wonkblog
New studies show that long commutes are significantly detrimental to people's happiness. So why choose the bigger house outside of town over the smaller house? Jonah Lehrer talks about the "weighting mistake" theory.
ScienceBlogs