Happy New Years 2022 from CCC!
ACTION ALERT!! On Jan. 26, 2022 Another Planning Board meeting on up-zoning Cambridge residential areas.
Tuesday January 18, 2022, the Planning Board will again take up ending our current single-family and two-family zoning restrictions to allow more market rate housing citywide. The
The CDD (Cambridge Development Department) overview is HERE.
By Monday (January 17) Noon PLEASE:
Write to the Planning Board by Monday Noon at: planningboardcomment@cambridgema.gov
CC City Council at: council@cambridgema.gov
CC the Clerk at: cityclerk@cambridgema.gov
Sign up to speak Tuesday Night by zoom: https://cambridgema.iqm2.com/Citizens/Detail_Meeting.aspx?ID=4042
Please urge the Planning Board, City Council, and the City Manager to OPPOSE any attempt to rewrite residential zoning citywide without more study and taking into account impacts on the environment, livability and affordability.
Simply up-zoning in this way to add more market rate (luxury housing) will
How we got here:
We had success at the last Planning Board meeting on Jan. 4! The Planning Board to the person voiced sizable concerns to CDD's Option 1 and up-zoning the residential areas more generally. They concluded that this plan must be sent back to the CDD to come up with other suggested plans. The Donovan petition proposal (the Advancing Housing Affordability plan) was viewed favorably as a good starting point by several Board members. A huge thanks to all the CCC members and friends who wrote in and spoke at this meeting. You made a big difference! The fight is not over, but this is a great way to begin this effort!
On Jan. 5, Cambridge Day editor, Marc Levy, has published an article on this Planning Board Meeting: HERE
Our Op Ed "Whatever Zoning" appeared in Cambridge Day (see image below) on January 3 the day before the Planning Board meeting. We also created this as a blogpost by this name and have been including updates at the bottom of the post. You can read and comment HERE Earlier we addressed some of the issues in our blog post on the problems about adding more market rate housing: Where to Start? Early January 2022 pro-Developer Citywide Residential Up-zoning in Play
Tuesday January 18, 2022, the Planning Board will again take up ending our current single-family and two-family zoning restrictions to allow more market rate housing citywide. The
The CDD (Cambridge Development Department) overview is HERE.
By Monday (January 17) Noon PLEASE:
Write to the Planning Board by Monday Noon at: planningboardcomment@cambridgema.gov
CC City Council at: council@cambridgema.gov
CC the Clerk at: cityclerk@cambridgema.gov
Sign up to speak Tuesday Night by zoom: https://cambridgema.iqm2.com/Citizens/Detail_Meeting.aspx?ID=4042
Please urge the Planning Board, City Council, and the City Manager to OPPOSE any attempt to rewrite residential zoning citywide without more study and taking into account impacts on the environment, livability and affordability.
Simply up-zoning in this way to add more market rate (luxury housing) will
- Make our city even more expensive by inviting investors and developers to sell to the top dollar – and it will increase the property values of everyone, adding to the increasing tax burden.
- Make the city less equitable not more.
- Create irretrievable losses of green spaces and our existing tree canopy, adding heat pocket and making us less environmentally sustainable.
How we got here:
We had success at the last Planning Board meeting on Jan. 4! The Planning Board to the person voiced sizable concerns to CDD's Option 1 and up-zoning the residential areas more generally. They concluded that this plan must be sent back to the CDD to come up with other suggested plans. The Donovan petition proposal (the Advancing Housing Affordability plan) was viewed favorably as a good starting point by several Board members. A huge thanks to all the CCC members and friends who wrote in and spoke at this meeting. You made a big difference! The fight is not over, but this is a great way to begin this effort!
On Jan. 5, Cambridge Day editor, Marc Levy, has published an article on this Planning Board Meeting: HERE
Our Op Ed "Whatever Zoning" appeared in Cambridge Day (see image below) on January 3 the day before the Planning Board meeting. We also created this as a blogpost by this name and have been including updates at the bottom of the post. You can read and comment HERE Earlier we addressed some of the issues in our blog post on the problems about adding more market rate housing: Where to Start? Early January 2022 pro-Developer Citywide Residential Up-zoning in Play
Three-Part Advancing Housing Affordability (AHA) Zoning Petition (pieces of a larger whole). See AHA link on this site for further information.
AHA UPDATE: Meeting Results of the November 16, 2021 City Council Ordinance Committee and Planning Board Meetings: The City Council Ordinance Committee decided to keep the AHA “in Committee” so that further work can be done on it. And they asked CDD to work with the Planning Board to come up with guidelines for new Single- and Two-Family District zoning language. The Planning Board, aware of the Council’s decision, gave a unfavorable vote to the AHA “as written” with the idea that the AHA proposals would be taken up by CDD and the Planning Board at a future meeting. At the same time, the Planning Board lauded the goals of the AHA petition and Hugh Russell noted that Part III of the AHA petition sought to address the root of our housing problem. This latter issue will be key if we are to have any sustainable plan going forward to address this.
One of the things we are asking for is that housing be added to the Parking, Transportation, Demand Management Ordinance where key decisions for commercial and institutional employers are made. With CDD now requiring that sometimes 20% of new commercial employees live in Cambridge, but not requiring that these groups address city and area housing needs has exacerbated the problem and made it untenable, particularly since what was supposed to be a new City Plan (Envision) has yet to be used to create a city wide housing plan, so we end up with more and more long term residents being displaced, and both rental and home ownership prices sky-rocketing.
AHA UPDATE: Meeting Results of the November 16, 2021 City Council Ordinance Committee and Planning Board Meetings: The City Council Ordinance Committee decided to keep the AHA “in Committee” so that further work can be done on it. And they asked CDD to work with the Planning Board to come up with guidelines for new Single- and Two-Family District zoning language. The Planning Board, aware of the Council’s decision, gave a unfavorable vote to the AHA “as written” with the idea that the AHA proposals would be taken up by CDD and the Planning Board at a future meeting. At the same time, the Planning Board lauded the goals of the AHA petition and Hugh Russell noted that Part III of the AHA petition sought to address the root of our housing problem. This latter issue will be key if we are to have any sustainable plan going forward to address this.
One of the things we are asking for is that housing be added to the Parking, Transportation, Demand Management Ordinance where key decisions for commercial and institutional employers are made. With CDD now requiring that sometimes 20% of new commercial employees live in Cambridge, but not requiring that these groups address city and area housing needs has exacerbated the problem and made it untenable, particularly since what was supposed to be a new City Plan (Envision) has yet to be used to create a city wide housing plan, so we end up with more and more long term residents being displaced, and both rental and home ownership prices sky-rocketing.
KEY UPCOMING MEETINGS AND EVENTS
WATCH “How to Build Better Affordable Housing” a video by star videographer Federico Muchnik, put out by the Walden Neighbors: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcMxysb2U7s Three of CCC's candidates - Dennis Carlone, Nicola Williams, and Patty Nolan - all speak passionately in this video of the need for thoughtful design in affordable housing.
PLEASE READ: Frogs-R-Us: Its Unrestrained Development that is threatening to boil us if we don't hop to polls
and Playing Monopoly in Cambridge is not just a game
Frogs-R-Us addresses some of the issues around developer interests and investments in Cambridge; Playing Monopoly takes up core issues in the architectural preservation issues around a move by another political party to gut long-standing conservation and historic preservation efforts in Cambridge
and Playing Monopoly in Cambridge is not just a game
Frogs-R-Us addresses some of the issues around developer interests and investments in Cambridge; Playing Monopoly takes up core issues in the architectural preservation issues around a move by another political party to gut long-standing conservation and historic preservation efforts in Cambridge
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Above image left; the cover to Jean-François Batellier’s 1978 cartoon collection, “No Deposit, No Return.”; right: cover of Cambridge Monopoly game.
THANK YOU again! Wed. Sept. 29th, the City Council Ordinance Committee sent back to the City (manager), a plan (petition) to gut our citywide preservation efforts. The committee asked the City Solicitor to determine if the petition was even legal and have required the petition to work with the CHC on possible compromise language.
Video of the October 29 Ordinance Committee Hearing on the petition to limit Neighborhood Conservation Districts with a majority of the public commentary opposed to this attempt to let developers have more power. Watch CHC Executive Director, Charles Sullivan on the building and social history of this area: www.cambridgema.gov/-/media/Files/historicalcommission/pdf/echistoryandresarchitecture.pdf
Video of the October 29 Ordinance Committee Hearing on the petition to limit Neighborhood Conservation Districts with a majority of the public commentary opposed to this attempt to let developers have more power. Watch CHC Executive Director, Charles Sullivan on the building and social history of this area: www.cambridgema.gov/-/media/Files/historicalcommission/pdf/echistoryandresarchitecture.pdf
THANK YOU! CCC's 2021 City Council Candidate Forum on Sept 26 from 4-6 PM went off without a hitch with a great Host Kerry Costello, a great moderator, Chuck Hinds, and a terrific group of City Council Candidates. Over 100 people were in the audience. A video of the event is now posted on Youtube: https://youtu.be/dnK2HglPr-8
Read about CCC's City Council Endorsees BELOW and on our Election Page.
Read about CCC's City Council Endorsees BELOW and on our Election Page.
Read the candidate questionnaires and news about the 2021 Cambridge City Council Election: www.cccoalition.org/election.html
NEED TO REGISTER TO VOTE? GO TO: bit.ly/Register2voteMA
Register to vote by October 13, 2021
VOTE BY MAIL Apply for Mail-in Ballot by Oct 19, 2021
Email: elections@cambridgema.gov Fax: 617-349-4366
Mail to the Cambridge Election Commission 51 Inman Street. 0213
Return Ballot to above address by Nov. 2
*Allow up to 7 days for ballot delivery by mail in each direction.
OTHER VOTING OPTIONS
Ballot Drop Box or Early Voting Sites: bit.lydropboxsites
Or VOTE IN PERSON ON NOVEMBER 2
Where to Vote? bit.ly/VotingPlaceMA
Register to vote by October 13, 2021
VOTE BY MAIL Apply for Mail-in Ballot by Oct 19, 2021
Email: elections@cambridgema.gov Fax: 617-349-4366
Mail to the Cambridge Election Commission 51 Inman Street. 0213
Return Ballot to above address by Nov. 2
*Allow up to 7 days for ballot delivery by mail in each direction.
OTHER VOTING OPTIONS
Ballot Drop Box or Early Voting Sites: bit.lydropboxsites
Or VOTE IN PERSON ON NOVEMBER 2
Where to Vote? bit.ly/VotingPlaceMA
Recent Cambridge Citizens Coalition Research and Opinion Pieces published in Cambridge Day
Promoting a More Livable Cambridge
Change can’t wait. We need bold, progressive polices to address our most pressing issues
POLICIES THAT MATTER ON:
1. Environmental Equity - addressing climate change can't wait! Safeguard trees and green spaces in every neighborhood.
2. Housing - stop gentrification, end exclusive single family zoning, create a real path to home ownership; add more mixed income housing
3. Smart Growth - we need a Citywide plan for smart growth (people before profits)
4. Neighborhoods are key (retain and build on naturally affordable longterm sustainable housing)
5. We live in an historic city; let's work together to preserve our rich architectural diversity.
6. Policies for equity (from Broadband and HEART to Universal Pre-K)
Recent CCC Events
... an August 2 City Hall Rally co-sponsored by 15 Cambridge groups supporting trees.
An important rally hosted by My Brothers Keeper and focused on recent gun violence (photos below) preceded the above tree rally at this same site.
Earlier, on June 17, 2021, many CCC leaders were out in support of a housing rally. the Peoples Housing Rally, opposing the misnamed Missing Middle Housing petition that sought to up-zone the whole city to add more luxury (market-based) housing in backyards and other areas (see images below).
WE ARE ALREADY IN A HOUSING CRISIS - DO WE REALLY WANT TO MAKE IT WORSE?!
Assault on Neighborhood Conservation Efforts
This petition has been introduced and forwarded by City Council to the Ordinance Committee. This petition ,that one could call the "Neighborhood Conservation District" (NGC) Assault Petition, was received from an individual often allied with the pro-developer political Pac calling itself "A Better Cambridge (ABC)." The petition seeks to gut Cambridge's long standing architectural preservation means, local areas established by neighbors to preserve the unique eclectic mix of housing in their area. What this petition does? It removes the right of citizens to petition the City on this matter, enabling City Council (who already must approve any new Conservation District after the study period, to stop the process before it even starts. Citizens will lose long established rights. And, Council (not citizens) can change the language of established districts, and have redefined criteria for existing Boards, from District residents who bring professional knowledge to these issues, to simply ones ownership status. Who benefits? Largely out-of-time developers, and non-resident monied investors (many of whom represent national and global financial interests), and those seeking to build large McMansions inconsistent with our long-standing local neighborhoods. Why this matters? Cambridge, founded in 1630, one of the oldest planned cities in America. Its history, and the legacy of its rich architecture matters - whether we are talking about workers cottages or more elite residences, workplaces, or one time battlegrounds. Because Cambridge neighborhoods matter, and this is just one more effort (based in part on a national drive) to end restrictions on developers and investors to build more luxury housing in this already very dense and very historic city - further gentrifying these areas, and forcing out long term lower income residents. We know that Neighborhood Conservation Districts help to keep rental and housing costs more stable, but this is not just about economic issues, and we know that our tourism economy and local businesses are dependent on our unique historical and architectural legacy; This petition is also about environmental sustainability - maintaining sound architecture. Please write City Council at: council@cambridgema.gov and CC the City Clerk at: cityclerk@cambridgema.gov
Read: the "Neighborhood Conservation District Assault Petition" at www.cccoalition.org/docsinfo.html
Read: the "Neighborhood Conservation District Assault Petition" at www.cccoalition.org/docsinfo.html
