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Record of Proceedings

Somerville Land Use Committee Discusses Affordable Housing Overlay Amendments - April 3, 2026

Meeting Portal — Friday, April 3, 2026
BodySomerville, Massachusetts
SessionMeeting Portal
DateFriday, April 3, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:00:51

Transcript — Verbatim
0:04

Welcome everybody.

0:05

I'll call this meeting of the land use committee to order.

0:08

It is Thursday, April 2nd at 6.02.

0:11

Will the clerk please call the roll?

0:13

This is roll call, Counselor Davis.

0:15

Here.

0:16

Counselor Clangan.

0:18

Present.

0:19

Counselor Sae.

0:22

Here.

0:23

Councilor McLaughlin is absent.

0:25

Counselor Young Campbell.

0:27

Here.

0:27

Before counselor's president, we have quorum.

0:30

Excellent.

0:31

Pursuant to chapter two of the Acts of 2025.

0:33

This meeting is being conducted via remote participation, and we will post an audio video recording and comprehensive record of the proceeding as soon as possible on the City of Somerville website and local cable access government channels.

0:49

We have one item on our agenda tonight, which is discussion of item 26024 requesting ordainment of an amendment to section 8.1 of the zoning ordinance to provide for larger buildings, additional dimensional flexibility, and fewer use restrictions for affordable housing projects.

1:11

And now it is time for the committee to start discussing it, ask questions, et cetera.

1:16

I believe that we're joined by a member of the planning preservation and zoning staff.

1:21

Is that correct?

1:25

Yes, hello.

1:26

I'm here from DiMartino, new deputy director for PPC.

1:30

Nice to meet you.

1:31

Nice to meet you and welcome aboard.

1:33

Thank you.

1:34

Exciting.

1:36

So we uh received a document that should be attached to the agenda, which is a more detailed comparison of the existing affordable housing overlay and what's proposed.

1:48

Um is it possible to get that on our screen?

1:57

Is this the document you're referring to?

1:59

This is the handout.

2:00

I do not have any other documents.

2:03

Let me make sure that you have the document I'm thinking of, and so it can be attached.

2:07

I believe this was sent by email a few days ago.

2:10

Bear with us.

2:12

Public.

2:13

Um yeah, Director Bartman, who uh drafted this along with staff, explained that for kind of drafting reasons, it was hard to display clearly every single thing that's changed.

2:27

So he created a number of um kind of easier to understand documents for the committee.

2:36

I'm just making sure that the clerk has these so we can share them.

2:42

I'm sorry, my computer seems to be grinding to a halt.

2:58

Uh Director Nageem Williams, can you please forward these to um the clerk?

3:05

Here, Mr.

3:06

Chair.

3:06

Yes, I can do that.

3:07

Thank you.

3:09

Mr.

3:10

Chair.

3:10

Yes, Counselor Davis.

3:12

I believe that the both of the documents that were sent are also attached to the agenda.

3:16

There's a link at least.

3:18

Not attached, but there's a link that I was able to find them at least.

3:23

That might be Sierra.

3:40

There should be two.

3:41

Is it is it the presentation?

3:44

Yes.

3:45

Oh, okay.

3:46

Then that's that's right here.

3:47

Sorry about that.

3:48

No worries.

3:49

Thank you.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning Regulations█████████████████████████████████████████████58%
Affordable Housing█████████████17%
Technology and Innovation███████9%
Procedural██████8%
Arts And Culture██████8%
Summary of Proceedings

Somerville Land Use Committee Discusses Affordable Housing Overlay Amendments - April 3, 2026

Note: The source materials (minutes and transcript) indicate the meeting occurred on April 2, 2026, but this summary uses the date provided in the instructions (April 3, 2026). The Land Use Committee met to discuss proposed amendments to Section 8.1 of the Zoning Ordinance (the Affordable Housing Overlay, AHO). Director of Planning Dan Bartman presented a detailed comparison of existing and proposed standards, and councilors raised concerns about parking setbacks, open space, and arts space. The item was kept in committee for further amendments.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the minutes of the Land Use Committee meeting of December 4, 2025 (ID #25-1859). Roll call: 4 ayes (Davis, Clingan, Sait, Ewen-Campen), 0 nays, 1 absent (McLaughlin).

Discussion Items

  • Affordable Housing Overlay Amendment (ID #26-0204): Director Bartman presented a slide deck clarifying changes to lot coverage, setbacks, building massing, and use restrictions. Key changes include:
    • Increasing maximum height from 7 to 8 stories.
    • Allowing 100% lot coverage (from MR6 standard) with reduced open space but higher green score requirements.
    • Eliminating upper story stepbacks to maximize bedrooms.
    • Setting parking setbacks at 30 feet from front lot lines (same as MR5/MR6).
    • Reducing fenestration minimums on ground floor commercial and removing blank wall requirements.
    • Requiring only one commercial space of any size, with no arts space set-aside (in-lieu payment under study).
  • Councilor Questions and Concerns:
    • Councilor Davis questioned why affordable housing projects face stricter parking setbacks than market-rate in MR3/MR4 districts. Director Bartman explained the standards were based on likely parcel sizes and return on investment, but offered to adjust the dimension.
    • Councilor Clingan asked how the Medford Street project would be affected; Director Bartman clarified the community path is not currently treated as a front lot line.
    • Councilor Ewen-Campen expressed opposition to the 30-foot parking setback, preferring more flexibility for affordable housing developers. He plans to propose an amendment.
    • Councilor Davis raised concerns about removing minimum story height and mechanical screening height limits. Director Bartman noted building codes set minimums and that affordable developers differ from market-rate in quality.
  • Arts Space In-Lieu Payment: Director Bartman reported that staff completed a financial analysis and are beginning legal review to craft a defensible ordinance. The goal is to allow payments in lieu of on-site arts space without violating state law.

Key Outcomes

  • The committee kept the AHO amendment in committee (no vote on the ordinance).
  • Chair Ewen-Campen indicated the item will be taken up at the next meeting (likely after an upcoming public hearing).
  • Councilors plan to prepare amendments addressing parking setbacks and possibly arts space requirements.
  • Director Bartman submitted a revised version of the red-line table for clarity, which will be reviewed before a future vote.

Meeting Transcript

Welcome everybody. I'll call this meeting of the land use committee to order. It is Thursday, April 2nd at 6.02. Will the clerk please call the roll? This is roll call, Counselor Davis. Here. Counselor Clangan. Present. Counselor Sae. Here. Councilor McLaughlin is absent. Counselor Young Campbell. Here. Before counselor's president, we have quorum. Excellent. Pursuant to chapter two of the Acts of 2025. This meeting is being conducted via remote participation, and we will post an audio video recording and comprehensive record of the proceeding as soon as possible on the City of Somerville website and local cable access government channels. We have one item on our agenda tonight, which is discussion of item 26024 requesting ordainment of an amendment to section 8.1 of the zoning ordinance to provide for larger buildings, additional dimensional flexibility, and fewer use restrictions for affordable housing projects. And now it is time for the committee to start discussing it, ask questions, et cetera. I believe that we're joined by a member of the planning preservation and zoning staff. Is that correct? Yes, hello. I'm here from DiMartino, new deputy director for PPC. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you and welcome aboard. Thank you. Exciting. So we uh received a document that should be attached to the agenda, which is a more detailed comparison of the existing affordable housing overlay and what's proposed. Um is it possible to get that on our screen? Is this the document you're referring to? This is the handout. I do not have any other documents. Let me make sure that you have the document I'm thinking of, and so it can be attached. I believe this was sent by email a few days ago. Bear with us. Public. Um yeah, Director Bartman, who uh drafted this along with staff, explained that for kind of drafting reasons, it was hard to display clearly every single thing that's changed. So he created a number of um kind of easier to understand documents for the committee. I'm just making sure that the clerk has these so we can share them. I'm sorry, my computer seems to be grinding to a halt. Uh Director Nageem Williams, can you please forward these to um the clerk? Here, Mr. Chair. Yes, I can do that. Thank you. Mr. Chair. Yes, Counselor Davis. I believe that the both of the documents that were sent are also attached to the agenda. There's a link at least.

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