Marc Laredo on housing
By all appearances, Councilor Marc Laredo is the leader — or one of the leaders — of a bloc of councilors who are anti-housing … or at least housing-skeptical. So, we should look closely at and take seriously what he has to say about housing....
145 Warren St. petition to be withdrawn
It appears that the proposal for multi-family housing at 145 Warren St. does not have the votes in the City Council and will be withdrawn. A vote was scheduled for July 12, but was postponed until tonight. There appear to be fifteen yes votes and nine no’s.... Is 145 Warren St. a preview of larger issues?
There’s a vote in the City Council tonight that merits your attention. The Council will vote on a special permit application to add three homes behind an existing house on a half-acre lot in Newton Centre. While the stakes for this particular lot are relatively small...
Zoning Options for Gun Stores in Newton
Tonight at 7:00 PM, the Zoning and Planning Committee of the Newton City Council (ZAP) will hold a public hearing on a request to amend the city’s zoning code to restrict firearm sales. The Planning Department has a recommendation. The recommendation (and supporting memorandum), meeting agenda, and Zoom link after the jump.Where should a gun shop go?
Mayor Ruthanne Fuller and city councilors have responded to the prospect of a gun store on Washington St. with a proposal to change the city’s zoning code to make the sale of firearms illegal at the proposed location. Mayor Fuller suggests (correctly, I think)...
Science labs for Riverside?
The hotel is out and life sciences are in at Riverside. Mark Development, the developer building a mixed-use development at Riverside Station, is asking the City Council for an amendment to the special permit the Council approved in October to allow for additional...
HIghlands Apartment Proposal
Tonight, the Land Use Committee of the City Council will discuss a 25-unit apartment building across Walnut Street from the Highland’s T station. The meeting agenda includes a Zoom link. The meeting begins at 7; the rezoning required and the apartment proposal...
Discouraging teardowns
Lots of folks, including the candidates in the recent special election, have identified eliminating or limiting teardowns as a key objective of Newton’s zoning reform. I get the sense, though, that different folks have different objectives for and different expectations from what I’ll call discouraging teardowns. So, open thread. What are your thoughts on teardowns? Discussion prompts in the full post.Zoning and Fair Housing in ZAP
Discussing a single whereas clause in a non-binding proclamation celebrating the work of Newton’s Fair Housing Committee (and ultimately approving the entire proclamation), the City Council’s Zoning and Planning Committee (ZAP) this week overwhelmingly recognized the...Newton Centre closer to getting a new independent school?
Until this week’s announcement that Hebrew College will be moving to a shared campus with Temple Reyim in Auburndale, I had missed the news that a Newton billionaire was funding the creation of a new independent high school — to be called the Winthrop Park School — on the former Hebrew College (7 acres) and Newton Andover Theological Seminary (20 acres) properties.
Save Nonantum’s Final Flourish
This seems like the logical conclusion to the Save Nonantum PAC’s entry into Newton’s politics: an online advertisement using a arguably racist trope to describe two candidates.* We have seen such last-minute nastiness in the past, but never before from an...
Crazy Divers: Men be like...
drivers man be like