Yes, well said Lisa. Thank you. 100% agree.
Theresa Kafina
On Sunday, October 8, 2023 at 07:42:40 PM EDT, Susanna Szeto
<[email protected]> wrote:
Well said Lisa! I totally agree!Susanna Szeto
On Oct 8, 2023, at 4:40 PM, Lisa Parker <[email protected]> wrote:
I would like to publicly encourage residents to consider the important
concerns raised by Robert Domnitz and Mark Levison. It is my hope that we can
pause and continue to come together collectively to consider MORE options as
the town navigates zoning and future land development of this proposed
magnitude. The feedback from SOTT is limited and therefore not necessarily
reflective of a majority opinion.
In hopes of thoughtful consideration and ongoing conversations.
Lisa Parker11 Greenridge Lane
On Sun, Oct 8, 2023 at 3:43 PM Lisa Parker <[email protected]> wrote:
I would like to publicly encourage residents to consider the important concerns
raised by Robert Domnitz and Mark Levison. It is my hope that we can pause and
continue to come together collectively to consider MORE options as the town
navigates zoning and future land development of this proposed magnitude. The
feedback from SCOT is limited and therefore not necessarily reflective of a
majority opinion.
In hopes of thoughtful consideration and ongoing conversations.
Lisa Parker11 Greenridge Lane
On Sat, Oct 7, 2023 at 9:22 PM Margaret Olson <[email protected]> wrote:
That is correct.
On Sat, Oct 7, 2023 at 9:19 PM Don Seltzer <[email protected]> wrote:
I'm not Bob, but I will offer my understanding of this simple law with complex
guidelines.
It does nothing that affects the current status of any housing. Deed
restricted affordable housing remains so. No existing buildings become
non-compliant.
The counting of potential housing units completely disregards what already
exists on a lot. The methodology assumes that some future tsunami or tornado
will come along and level everything that is there. The counting method then
looks at what could be built on the empty lots under the proposed rezoning.
The only risk is that the current development can be supplemented with
additional units that somehow put the SHI status in jeopardy, such as the
Oriole Landing situation that I described in a previous post.
Don Seltzer
On Sat, Oct 7, 2023 at 5:44 PM ٍSarah Postlethwait <[email protected]>
wrote:
Bob- it sounds like you may know the answer to a question I have.
If we rezone areas such as Lincoln woods, Battle Farm Rd and Oriole Landing,
would these areas even count towards the 3A? I believe all of these have
current deed restrictions requiring more than 10% affordable housing. The HCA
only allows 10% max to be required to be affordable (Margaret Olson has
confirmed that the planning board will only be able to require 10% affordable
housing).
If they don’t count towards 3A, why are we even considering rezoning these
areas?
And if they do count towards 3A, will they lose their deed restrictions, and
put these affordable housing units at risk (I know everyone says it’s unlikely
it will be redeveloped- but why take the risk??).
Sarah Postlethwait
Lewis Street
On Fri, Oct 6, 2023 at 1:30 PM Robert Domnitz <[email protected]> wrote:
As a recently-retired member of the Planning Board and Housing Choice Act
Working Group, I am concerned that the three options presented last Saturday at
the SOTT - and the plan to choose just one of those options at a multi-board
meeting on October 10th - will restrict Town Meeting to merely rubber-stamping
the HCAWG's decision. And the HCAWG's decision will reflect its embedded
priorities that may differ from what town meeting would choose if we are given
more options. I therefore think it is crucial for the HCAWG to submit several
options to the state for advisory opinions prior to Town Meeting. All options
should be presented to Town Meeting for debate and vote.
I'd like to expand on some of the points made - and some of the points omitted
- by the presenters at last Saturday's SOTT meeting.
1. About 35% of the town's residences are currently multi-family (not including
Hanscom Field, see list below). Most folks are surprised when they hear this.
Lincoln has done an outstanding job allowing multi-family living while
maintaining our rural character. With full build-out under the HCA,
multi-family housing will approach50% of the town's inventory.
2. State guidelines for the HCA provide a mechanism for towns toget credit for
existing multifamily housing. Towns are free to locate HCA-compliant
subdistricts in areas that currently have high residential density. These
subdistricts will help us meet our "quota," even though it is very unlikely
these areas will be redeveloped.
3. An evaluation of the various options requires consideration of the
likelihood that redevelopment willactually occur. Existing condo developments
would require consent of the owners to redevelop, with the particular
procedures laid out in the condominiums' organizational documents. If condo
owners don't want redevelopment to happen, it won't happen. Existing apartment
buildings (e.g., Oriole Landing) owned by a single entity would only require a
decision by that entity and would depend on their analysis of whether an
increase in density would justify the cost of redevelopment. On the other hand,
rezoning single family homes on Conant Road as shown in options A,B, and C from
the HCAWG would likely result in rapid redevelopment,as owners on Conant Road
take advantage of thejump in value that would result from the increasein
development potential.
4. State guidelines require that only 20% of the HCA-compliant district be
located in the vicinity of the commuter rail station. The other 80% can be
anywhere in town. However, the HCAWG eliminated consideration of the Farrar
Pond and Lincoln Ridge condos as "too far from any amenities and public
transit." See link below to p. 17 of SOTT slide deck. This area could be used
as part of our plan for compliance; the HCAWG's decision to eliminate
consideration of this area reflects their prioritization of access to public
transit and goes beyond what the state requires. Similarly, the Commons/Oriole
Landing area was removed from consideration by the HCAWG because it is "not
walkable to any public transit or public amenities." See p. 20 of SOTT slide
deck. Instead, the HCAWG has proposed placing 100% of the district in Lincoln
Station (option C) or adding to option C additional subdistricts in North
Lincoln so that the total development potential greatly exceeds what is
necessary for compliance.
5. The HCAWG should consider other ways of splitting the HCA district.The
current option C fully complies with the HCA by allowing development only
within the Lincoln Station area. If compliance with state law is our objective,
options A and B are less appealing because they needlessly add to option C more
development potential elsewhere in town. Among the three options, C is the
obvious choice for most residents because it minimally complies with the HCA.
But the Town deserves a chance to vote on other options that do not exceed the
HCA's requirements. Three options that would make sense are:
- Place the entire district at Lincoln Station (current option C)
- Place most of the district at Lincoln Station and some of the district
elsewhere.
- Place some of the district at Lincoln Station and most of the district
elsewhere.
For all options, the details should be worked out for minimal compliance with
the HCA, giving Lincoln residents maximum control over future land use
decisions. It's worth noting that the HCA does allow, on a discretionary basis,
subdistrict boundaries that do not match parcel boundaries. This may provide
the Town with additional flexibility it needs to comply with, but not exceed,
the HCA's requirements.
Residents deserve a meaningful, democratic chance to choose the level of
development they want in the Lincoln Station area. Due to the limited set of
options that were presented, I don't think the survey taken at the SOTT is a
good indicator of the will of the town. Surprisingly, the HCAWG did not propose
an option where some development allowed elsewhere in Town is used to reduce
the development allowed at Lincoln Station. All three of their options allow
more than 400 units of additional development in the Lincoln Station area. That
is an extreme increase compared to what currently exists in the area. See p. 40
of SOTT slide deck.
My goal in writing this post is to encourage the HCAWG to give our Town Meeting
the respect and deference to which it is entitled. This is a hugely important
matter for the Town and we can move forward together only if Town Meeting has a
meaningful role as the decisionmaker. Please attend the October 10th
multi-board meeting to share your thoughts.
Best regards to all,
Bob Domnitz
SOTT slide deck: Follow link found in
https://www.lincolntown.org/1327/Housing-Choice-Act-Working-Group
Existing multifamily housing in Lincoln (not including Hanscom housing):
The Commons
Oriole Landing
Battle Road Farms
Minuteman Commons
Lincoln Woods
Greenridge Condos
"Flying Nun" apartments
Ridge Road apartments
Ridge Road Condos
Todd Pond Condos
Farrar Pond Condos
Lincoln Ridge Condos
Ryan Estate
Accessory Apartments in Single Family Homes
Miscellaneous (Scattered sites under Housing Comm.)
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