When Town Meeting voted on zoning articles to comply with the MBTA communities law it considered both a minimally compliant Base plan and a more expansive Neighborhood plan.
Viewing the Base and Neighborhood plan maps side-by-side, one does not see many striking differences. They share about 90% of the same acreage along the town’s commercial spine and bordering the commuter rail tracks.
The more impactful differences between the Base and Neighborhood plans lie in the dimensional requirements for what is allowed to be built. The Neighborhood Plan increases the allowed Floor-to-Area Ratio (FAR), allowing more or larger units. In certain sections of the rezoned area, the Neighborhood Plan allows an extra half-story, which means a developer can build a fourth floor of apartments. That bonus floor would be a reward for providing a certain number of those units that would be “workforce housing” – affordable by renters with annual incomes around $90,000 to $110,000. This is the class of housing that proponents say could be available for teachers, police, firefighters, nurses and others currently priced out of the Needham market.
To create both plans, the town divided the rezoned area into districts. Each district has designated parameters for building height, units allowed per acre, and FAR.
View the town’s comparison of the base plan and the neighborhood plan.
Housing by the Numbers:
- At $1.46 million, the average value of Needham’s 8,414 single-family homes is in the top 5% of the state. This may be great if you’re already here, but it’s also a barrier to entry and may limit the pool of potential buyers.
- The volume of single-family homes sales in Needham has dropped each of the past eight years, from 430 in 2016 to an expected 225 in 2024.
- It is estimated that qualifying for a $1.5 million home with a 20% down payment, you’d likely need an estimated annual income in the range of $375,000 – $450,000.
- According to apartments.com, rents in Needham are 75% above the national average.
- And seniors who might otherwise be positioned to sell have reported they are remaining in their homes due to a lack of affordable “downsizing” options that would allow them to remain in the area.
Save as PDF