Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has signed an amendment to eliminate parking minimums for affordable housing developments.
“This action will help take down barriers to the creation of new affordable housing across the city,” Wu said in a statement. “We need every tool in our toolbox to address our city’s housing crisis. Eliminating parking minimums removes an outdated standard from our zoning code and will spur new housing to make it easier for Bostonians to live and stay in our city.”
The move ends parking minimums for residential developments where at least 60% of the units are income-restricted at 100% of the area median income (AMI) or below.
The zoning change will not eliminate all parking at qualified residential projects but rather will allow each individual project to determine the amount of off-street parking necessary based on the needs of the project's residents, rather than the existing, outdated formula, according to the city.
The Boston City Council unanimously passed the text amendment to the zoning code at a meeting last October, put forward by president pro tempore Matt O’Malley and councilor Kenzie Bok.
“The need to build affordable housing in Boston has never been more vital, with half of Boston's renters being rent-burdened,” said O’Malley. “Eliminating parking minimums is an impactful and commonsense policy solution that can provide transformative relief for affordable housing builders.”
On-site parking requirements often add significant costs to affordable housing developments across the country. It’s frustrating for developers because they are required to build parking as part of their developments even though many residents, especially those in permanent supportive housing and seniors housing, do not own cars.
Boston’s move will help make the development of affordable housing faster and more cost effective, says Bart Mitchell, president and CEO of The Community Builders (TCB), a leading nonprofit affordable housing provider.
His organization knows the challenges firsthand. TCB and Pine Street Inn have been working to develop Boston’s largest supportive housing development. The project at 3368 Washington St. will bring 202 affordable units to the city, 140 of which will be supportive housing for individuals who have been homeless. The remaining units will serve family and individual households earning below and up to 30% and between 60% and 80% of the AMI.
The project is only two blocks from a transit station, but the team planned to spend several million dollars to construct an underground garage with 39 parking spaces as part of the development. The project has had strong community support, but one nearby property owner sued, claiming an approved parking variance would result in too few spaces for the large development.
The city’s elimination of minimum parking will “put the power back in the public community process, rather than a disgruntled abutter who uses zoning rules to block affordable housing,” Mitchell says.
TCB and the other property owner eventually reached a settlement. The project will now build or lease 59 parking spaces.
Developers plan to start construction on 3368 Washington St. this month after a costly delay. The lawsuit added about a year to the project, during which time construction costs rose over 10%, according to Mitchell.
Hopefully, such lengthy and pricy situations can be avoided at future developments.
Boston’s move to eliminate parking minimums for affordable housing is another tool in the toolkit for developers, Mitchell says.
