NAHANT — The Town is ramping up its efforts to comply with the State’s MBTA 3A zoning mandate, which requires communities served by the MBTA to designate one district where multi-family homes are established.
Enacted as part of the economic development bill in January 2021, new Section 3A of M.G.L. c. 40A (the Zoning Act) requires that an MBTA community has at least one zoning district of reasonable size in which multi-family housing is permitted as of right and meets other criteria set forth in the statute, according to the Town’s website.
The several points of criteria are as follows:
- There must be a minimum gross density of 15 units per acre
- It must not be more than half a mile from a commuter rail station, subway station, ferry terminal or bus station, if applicable
- There must be no age restrictions, and it must be suitable for families with children.
According to Planning Board Chair Sheila Hambleton, the board is currently working to draft a zoning bylaw regarding the issue. Once the board has completed a thorough draft, it will be presented to the Select Board for review.
Hambleton said the board “is still in the early stages of editing the draft.”
As the board prepares to flesh out its draft of a zoning bylaw to narrow down a spot for the multi-family units, it has begun looking at different areas in town to determine what would be most feasible for the project (such as Bass Point, Nahant Road and Range Road). Since it’s still being discussed, areas of consideration may change as the process continues.
Hambleton reiterated that due to the process still being in the earliest stages of development, nothing is finalized yet until further discussion and analysis continue on the matter.
Interim Town Administrator and Finance Director Alison Nieto also commented on the matter.
“The Town is working toward compliance with MBTA 3A before the deadline of Dec. 31 (the state deadline for an adjacent small town). The Planning Board is working hard to draft a zoning bylaw,” Nieto said. “From there, they’ll bring it to the Select Board for further review. … Ultimately, it will end up in a Special Town Meeting in the fall where the community will vote to pass the zoning bylaw.”
Nieto said that as the Planning Board’s work on the draft continues, there will be public input sessions where the community can learn more about the process and give feedback prior to voting in the fall.
