The author of a prescient Feb 2, 2022 letter to the Cambridge Chronicle (CambridgeWicked.com) explains what is happening in his Cambridgeport neighborhood HERE
The Pearl Street resident who wrote this piece explains that "If you’ve gone down Pearl Street in Cambridgeport recently, you’ll notice something missing. From the window of my apartment, across the street, I watched it vanish. On Jan. 4, Pearl Street Market was demolished. Together with the adjacent parking lot and an existing two-family home (4 William St.), this lot will be redeveloped into five detached homes – three single-family homes and a two-family structure. Besides the existing buildings, Cambridgeport is losing a small business, affordable housing, and its walkable, historic character. Unfortunately, our own zoning laws are to blame for this disappearing act. The redevelopment now underway is exactly what our current zoning calls for...." We agree completely with the concerns voiced by this resident, namely that Cambridge is losing key amenities (such as local businesses) that have long made our city livable. We also completely concur with another point made by this resident in this letter which states that: "Of course, corner stores are no good if no one can afford to live nearby. Several apartment units are being demolished by this project, and zoning ensures larger, expensive houses will be built instead. The assembled lot is 12,000 square feet. For comparison, 464 Green Street, just off Mass Ave., is an attractive old three-story building with 18 units on an 11,000 square-foot lot. My own building, 94–104 Pearl, has 22 apartments on 7,500 square feet. Two lovely apartment buildings! However, current residence C zoning has a minimum “lot size per dwelling unit” requirement of 1,800 square feet. Dividing this lot size (12,000) by 1,800, a maximum of six units are allowed on this site. With a lower lot size per dwelling unit requirement, projects like this could create more homes, and they’d be more affordable." The Pearl Street Market that once stood here appears now to be one of the several expensive $2.4 million luxury homes on Pearl Street that sold in 2023, forcing up property values, property taxes and rents considerably near by. Our friends across the city from East Cambridge to North Cambridge to Strawberry Hill are experiencing the same thing. Sadly the current up-zoning proposal promoted by the political group promoting more luxury housing in Cambridge is written in such a way as to encourage even more luxury housing as of right, without means of legal redress, and without any design oversight. These structures can reach 4 stories in height and can extend to 5 feet from the property line at the sides and rear. Properties such as this one and others in this neighborhood and elsewhere will be a major target for not only corner stores but also existing residences.
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