Letters

LETTER: Group to City Council: Voters Want Action on Housing Affordability

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Dear City Councilors,

We write to share compelling evidence that voters in our community — and across the state — are ready for bold action to make housing more affordable. Recent polling reveals that clear majorities of voters support the action needed to build more homes that people can afford, even when that choice is put up directly against protecting neighborhood character from change. In fact, when asked to choose, 71% of voters prioritized building affordable homes over preserving traditional neighborhood character. 

The community acceptance of necessary change is widespread. Housing has emerged as voters’ top concern, ranking above cost of living, immigration, or taxes. And remarkably, this pro-housing sentiment crosses all demographic lines, spanning age, race, income, education, and homeownership status. These results come as Watertown considers new plans and priorities that can make a meaningful difference in housing affordability in the coming months.

Letters

OP-ED: Housing Group Celebrates Well-Attended Forum on Building 100% Affordable Housing Projects

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One of the most pressing ways that our region’s housing shortage affects Watertown is through an acute lack of deed-restricted affordable housing. It’s quite simple: more of these units would help to keep Watertown’s working people in our city. Yet while Watertown’s inclusionary zoning policy ensures that a proportion of each market rate development’s units are set aside as affordable housing, this only chips away at the shortage. What if, instead, there was a way to build more developments that were composed of just workforce and lower income housing? As an effort to explore more expansive solutions to the affordable housing shortage, Housing for All Watertown hosted a forum on February 23rd to share more about what it will take to build these 100% affordable housing developments (click here for highlights of event).

Around Town

OP-ED: Watertown Backs Public Housing Revamp, Addition of Affordable Housing

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The Watertown Housing Authority will team with Preservation of Affordable Housing to renovate the Willow Park complex. (Courtesy of the WHA)

By Mark Pickering

Watertown is again taking the lead in addressing the Massachusetts housing crisis. The city’s goal this time is to rebuild Willow Park’s public housing and add affordable units to the project. Since Watertown OK’d the development, our neighbor to the south has taken steps to add more all-affordable housing as well. The Boston Planning and Development Agency has OK’d a 63-unit all-affordable project and a 52-unit one, both in Roxbury.

Around Town

Housing for All Watertown Hosting Panel Discussion on 100% Affordable Housing

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The following announcement was provided by Housing for All Watertown:

Housing for All Watertown (HAW) would like to invite all to the “What Will It Take to Build 100% Affordable Housing in Watertown?” forum on Sunday, Feb. 23. The purpose is to gain an understanding of Watertown’s Affordable Housing situation and the possibilities for change. There will be presentations followed by a panel discussion of developers and planners. Panelists:

Madeline Lee, Senior Project Manager, Just A Start

Mel Miller, Project Manager, Preservation of Affordable Housing

Laura Weiner, Housing and Planning Consultant

Sara Barcan, Executive Director, HRI

The forum will be in the Watertown Savings Bank Room at the Watertown Free Public Library, 123 Main St., from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

To RSVP click here:https://www.eventbrite.com/e/what-will-it-take-to-build-100-affordable-housing-in-watertown-tickets-1244250961119

Government

City Council Approves Seed Money for Willow Park Affordable Housing Development

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A rendering of the Willow Park Housing development. The first new public housing building in Watertown to be constructed in Watertown in decades took a significant step forward when the City Council approved spending Community Preservation Act funds on the project at Willow Park on Tuesday night. The development will create 138 units on the site of 60 that currently has units. On Tuesday, the Council approved the Community Preservation Committee’s recommendation to spend $4 million in CPA funds on the project. Councilors also approved money to cover the cost of the restoration of historic paintings that hang in the lobby of City Hall.

Government

Tweaks to Watertown Square Zoning Map Discussed by Planning Board, Council

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The City Council and Planning Board got down to the details of the proposed new Zoning Map for the Watertown Square Area on Tuesday night, suggesting some changes to the proposal including allowing taller buildings in some spots, more modest ones in others, and keeping the Delta “green.” The third night of hearings included an extended discussion of the zoning map by the Planning Board, as well as continuation of questions from the City Council and some public comments. The City Council finished their question time, but the Planning Board will continue its hearing Wednesday, Oct. 30 at 6 p.m in City Hall with remote participation (Click here for the agenda and links). They will make a recommendation that will be considered by the City Council at its hearing on Nov.

Around Town

OP-ED: Housing for All Group Seeks More Affordable Housing in Watertown Square Area Plan

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Photo by Mark Pickering

By Mark Pickering

At a recent meeting of the Housing for All Watertown group, speakers touted the group’s success in its effort to deliver “the most ambitious MBTA Communities Act plan in the state.” Now the group is shifting gears to focus on getting more affordable housing as part of the plan. In Watertown, the YIMBY (Yes In My Back Yard) movement is alive and kicking. Members of the grassroots group say that the next step is to bring a greater number of affordable units into Watertown Square. Communities served by the T are required to submit rezoning plans (under the 2021 MBTA law) that would allow for building multifamily housing. 

To that goal, the Watertown group has come up with an “affordable housing bonus plan.” The idea is to increase the incentives for developers to build up if their plans meet certain affordable housing guidelines. As it now stands, the Watertown Square rezoning lacks robust incentives for including affordable housing in new buildings.

Around Town

Hear About Funded Projects & How to Apply at Community Preservation Act Public Hearing

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The following announcement was provided by the City of Watertown:

SAVE THE DATE for the Community Preservation Act (CPA) Annual Public Hearing, hosted by the Community Preservation Committee (CPC). Watertown City Hall in the Lower Hearing Room, Thursday, June 27, 2024, at 7 p.m.

Or join remotely via Zoom: https://watertown-ma.zoom.us/j/91525442843. Don’t miss this event for your chance to:

Hear more about the recently funded CPA Projects. Find out about the next steps for the Old Burying Ground and Common Street Cemeteries and the Commander’s Mansion Cultural Landscape projects. Tell us about your open space, outdoor recreation, community housing, and historic preservation priorities.