Imagine a future Needham where single family houses still predominate, but a variety of new multifamily housing is available near commuter rail stations, giving seniors more options to downsize and making housing more attainable for our teachers, police, and young people.
On October 21, Town Meeting Members will make an important decision about the future of housing in Needham, voting on two zoning plans which are up for consideration. Both plans comply with the MBTA Communities Act, which requires cities and towns with an MBTA transit stop to adopt zoning that allows multifamily housing by right, predominantly in areas near transit. For Needham, this means allowing a minimum of 1,784 multifamily units.
Currently, 90% of Needham is zoned exclusively for single-family residences, and that will not change. The zoning plans only affect commercial and mixed-use areas along Chestnut Street, as well as Highland and Hillside Avenues.
Two plans — two different visions. The Base Plan meets minimum compliance with the MBTA Act. The Neighborhood Housing Plan is more ambitious, allowing for greater density and more units than the Basic Plan.
Green Needham strongly endorses the Neighborhood Housing Plan, which has been carefully crafted by the Town-appointed Housing Needham (HONE) advisory group, after receiving public input at many community meetings. It is important to remember that both plans allow, but do not mandate, development. A full build-out of the allowable units is very unlikely. Most of the affected parcels are currently being put to use, so the new housing that does get built will be done gradually over many years. Green Needham believes that the Neighborhood Plan, with its allowance of increased height and density, offers the incentives necessary to make development of much-needed new housing more financially feasible.
Among the environmental benefits of multifamily housing:
- Development of multifamily housing near transit stations will increase ridership of public transportation, which is one of the goals of Needham’s Climate Action Roadmap..
- Multifamily housing saves energy and uses resources wisely by making smaller living spaces available.
- More customers within walking distance of businesses will keep the downtown vibrant and encourage more local shopping and less driving.
If you would like to learn more about the MBTA Communities Act or the Town’s two proposals for compliance, you can consult these resources:
- The Town’s FAQs about the MBTA Communities Act (September 2024) are a helpful source of information, including maps and detailed comparisons of the proposed plans.
- The HONE Advisory Group website has their summary report and the final zoning maps.
- The Needham Housing Coalition website has a wealth of information supporting their advocacy of the Neighborhood Housing Plan.
We urge you to support the Neighborhood Housing Plan and to contact your Town Meeting Members to ask them to vote in favor of the proposed zoning changes. You will be joining Green Needham, the Needham Housing Coalition, the League of Women Voters of Needham, Representative Denise Garlick, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital and others supporting the Neighborhood Housing Plan. You can see letters sent to the Town regarding the proposed zoning changes here (scroll down to Article 11).
You can email your Town Meeting Members here. Please note that the system for contacting Town Meeting Members is currently being updated. Follow the instructions under the heading “Contact Your Town Meeting Member.” If you’re not sure of your precinct, find it here.
