TO: Eileen Donoghue, City Manager FROM: R. Eric Slagle, Director Of

The City of Lowell • Dept. of Planning and Development • Division of Development Services Lowell City Hall • 375 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 P: 978.674.4144 • F: 978.446.7103 www.LowellMA.gov

Kara Keefe Mullin

Assistant City Manager/Acting DPD Director

R. Eric Slagle Director of Development Services TO: Eileen Donoghue, City Manager David Fuller FROM: R. Eric Slagle, Director of Development Services Building Commissioner Francesca Cigliano, Senior Planner

DATE: March 16, 2021

RE: Housing Availability Report

Attached please find the Housing Availability Report that was requested by the Zoning Subcommittee. We would request that this report be referred to the subcommittee for presentation and review.

ES

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 1

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 2

7/28/2020 – Councilor Rourke/Councilor Nuon – Req. City Mgr. Review Current Zoning Code for Areas to Increase Housing Availability

We last overhauled the City’s Zoning Code in 2004. The world has In the Traditional Neighborhood Multi-Family (TMF) zoning district, changed considerably since then, and the need for housing—in both 40 percent of homes are on lots that the code deems too small to allow number and type—has changed too. This report provides a menu of even one house. Ninety-three percent of lots in the TMF are too zoning changes that the Council could adopt to increase housing small to allow a triple-decker, the archetypal New England home. availability in the City. Draft ordinances are ready for some of these In the Traditional Neighborhood Two-Family (TTF) zoning district, 96 ideas and we are ready to explore all in further detail as directed by the percent of lots are too small—according to the code—to allow two Zoning Subcommittee and the full City Council. homes.

The recommendations in this report come from years of saying no: to In 2016, the City of Somerville released a report with the stunning the family who wants to build an in-law apartment for their aging finding that in the city of 80,000 people only 22 residential buildings grandparent, to the owner who wants to add an attic apartment to met the current zoning requirements. One thinktank called the findings offset the cost of their mortgage, and to builder who wants to turn a “The Illegal City of Somerville”.1 We could write a similar report vacant lot into a new home. To start saying yes, we need to debate and about Lowell. Yet, we love our neighborhoods and the historic homes discuss the over 20 ideas in this report to use zoning to increase in them. We can start by making these neighborhoods legal once housing. again. Somerville is well on their way to doing so.

The need for new housing is significant. Every year we fall far short of Zoning cannot undue the decades of disinvestment in public housing the new homes needed to just keep up with population growth—a by the Federal Government. However, we cannot begin to solve our shortage of nearly 3,400 homes over the last 15 years. Failing to housing crisis without reevaluating our regulations and determining produce these homes translates into higher rents and mortgages. Sixty which ones are unnecessarily stymying change. When we allow more percent of Lowell households rent. Of those households, 55 percent are housing, we will be inviting more neighbors into our city. These rent burdened. neighbors will be customers at our restaurants, entrepreneurs who create jobs, and they will be eyes on the street to keep our city safe. We need to allow for new missing middle housing, the sort of housing that we see throughout our neighborhoods: duplexes, triplexes, We are not actively denying housing in Lowell to those who can afford quadplexes, and small apartment buildings. These types of buildings our prices. However, we have a moral obligation to ensure our zoning are impossible to construct today without many variances. Under does not raise those prices to heights where we lose the rich multi- current zoning, over two-thirds of the city is zoned exclusively for cultural and socioeconomic diversity that makes Lowell the city we single-family homes. In those neighborhoods that theoretically allow love. for multi-family homes, Special Permits, minimum lot sizes, and other dimensional requirements block construction. Jared Alves

Senior Planner October 23, 2020

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 3

CONTENTS

I. THE NEED ...... 5 D. New Ordinances ...... 25 II. HOUSING VISION ...... 8 1. Allow Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) ...... 25 III. ZONING REFORMS ...... 10 2. Issue Zoning Amnesty for Illegal Units ...... 27 A. Rezoning ...... 11 3. Adopt an Ordinance to Permit Use Variances ...... 28 1. Legalize More Housing Types in More Places ...... 13 4. Pass an Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance ...... 28 2. Expand the Downtown Mixed-Use (DMU) Zone ...... 15 5. Adopt an Affordable Housing Overlay ...... 29 3. Reevaluate Riverfront Zoning ...... 16 E. Revise Sections ...... 30 B. Dimensional Requirements ...... 17 1. Amend the Definition of a Family ...... 30 1. Revise Requirements to Reflect Existing or Desired Pattern .. 18 2. Revise Section 8.1 to Again Include all Large Buildings ...... 33 2. Increase Maximum Allowed Floor Area Ratios (FARs) ...... 19 3. Increase the Threshold for Site Plan Review ...... 34 3. Increase Maximum Allowed Building Heights and Stories .... 19 4. Revise the Planned Residential Development Ordinance ...... 34 4. Eliminate or Reduce Off-Street Parking Minimums ...... 20 5. Reevaluate the Downtown Smart Growth Overlay District .... 35 C. Table of Uses ...... 21 6. Rescind the Neighborhood Character Special Permit ...... 35 1. Allow Multi-Family Homes of a Certain Size by Right ...... 21 7. Clarify Neighborhood Character Review ...... 36 2. Permit More Housing in the Regional Retail (RR) District .... 23 IV. CONCLUSION AND NEXT STEPS ...... 37 3. Allow Manufactured (Mobile) Homes ...... 24 V. REFERENCES ...... 38 4. Allow More Single Room Occupancy (SRO) ...... 24

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 4

I. THE NEED

Permitting additional housing is vital as the Greater Lowell Health Alliance and Lowell General Hospital have found that “Lowell has the highest gross rent as a percent of income and is the fourth most expensive city” in Massachusetts.2 The assessment also noted, “more than half of all rental units” in Lowell “cost more than 30% of household incomes.” When “this threshold passes 32%... [it] can lead to a homelessness crisis”.3

Zoning reforms alone cannot solve this crisis, but zoning is an essential tool to increase housing availability to decrease the cost of housing. Researchers have found that “for every 10% increase in the housing stock, rents decreased 1%”4 and that even new buildings “decrease rents by 5 to 7 percent”5 in nearby buildings. New buildings help blunt rising rents because relatively wealthier individuals will choose these newer buildings, thereby freeing up older housing with lower rents for comparatively less wealthy households.6 As the chart to the right shows, Lowell is not building enough housing today.

i The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) maintains a Source: U.S. Census Bureau Annual Building Permit Survey, as reported by DataTown, a website called Housing MA to aid municipalities in creating Housing product of the Massachusetts Housing Partnership’s Center for Housing Data. Production Plans. The site analyzes expected population growth, changes in housing preferences, changes in family sizes, changes in When demand for new housing outpaces construction, prices increase. age cohorts, and the housing needs of retiring Baby Boomers to project The increasing prices then translate into higher costs for new housing demands. For Lowell, MAPC projects an annual need to homebuyers and renters. The U.S. Census Bureau’s American construct 110 single-family homes and 220 multi-family units.7 Community survey captures median monthly rents. As the chart on the Accounting for all types of housing units, from 2005 to 2019 the City next page shows, since 2010, the Lowell median rent has increased averaged about 104 new homes per year. Over the 15-year period, nearly 6 percent. During that same period, the rental vacancy rate fell. the shortfall totaled nearly 3,400 homes.

i MAPC is the regional planning agency for the 101 municipalities of Metro Boston.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 5

Source: calculated using U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates Source: calculated using U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates from 2010-2018, Table DP04: Selected Housing Characteristics. Median rents inflation adjusted from 2018-2018, Table DP04: Selected Housing Characteristics. using the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index Inflation Calculator comparing January in each year to January 2018.

Higher rents and falling vacancies mean that an increasing percentage of According to the American Community Survey, 55 percent of Lowell households are rent burdened.ii These households have less Lowell renter households are rent burdened.8 Further, the chart above income to pay for their transportation, meals, and other essentials. They shows that the percent of rent-burdened households has increased since save less per month and are at greater risk of further financial hardship 2010. Focusing on renter households is important because nearly 60 and even homelessness due to unexpected shocks, like steep medical percent of Lowell households rent. In addition, since 2010 the median bills following an accident or illness. To afford rent, lower income selected monthly owner costs have declined 16 percent.9 As costs have individuals may also share rooms making them susceptible to pandemics fallen for homeowners, they have increased for renters, and renters who like COVID-19 that thrive in overcrowded conditions. Many Lowellians were already a majority of households in Lowell are an increasing share are experiencing this hardship today. of all households.

ii The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development defines “rent burdened” as spending more than 30% of income on rent.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 6

Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates from 2010-2018, Table DP04: Selected Housing Characteristics

The data from MAPC shows that Lowell is not permitting enough new housing each year and costs are increasing. Researchers have found that building new housing is necessary to stem and reduce rising housing costs. Lowell renters are particularly vulnerable to rising costs as most are already rent burdened today. The COVID-19 pandemic, which is strangling finances in the short-term, and the prospects of American climate refugees competing for homes in cooler, inland Northeastern cities in the long-term will exacerbate the current shortage.10 Fortunately, we already have agreed to a vision for building housing that accounts for the varied needs of the community.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 7

II. HOUSING VISION

Sustainable Lowell 2025, the City’s master plan, set the vision for housing in the city by defining a Housing Choice goal: Lowell will seek to provide a range of safe, fair, high quality, and affordable housing opportunities for residents of all backgrounds in an effort to achieve the level of diversity that will germinate both prosperity and innovation. Although the goal calls for providing a range of housing, the chart below shows that since 2004 over 70 percent of all new homes were in single-family buildings. The skewing towards single-family homes exists despite builders converting large former mills into multi-family residences during this period.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau Annual Building Permit Survey, as reported by DataTown, a product of the Massachusetts Housing Partnership’s Center for Housing Data.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 8

pursue and an analysis of the setbacks, heights, boundaries, etc. that fit Lowell. By preparing this list, we have taken the first step to acknowledge that we have a housing crisis. Responding to the crisis will take considerably more time and resources.

To deliver a range of housing types, we need to enable builders to convert and construct a range of housing types—from detached single- families to duplexes and triplexes, small apartment buildings to large ones. However, the City has not seen a diversity of new housing types. If the City were meeting the housing targets set by MAPC, single- family homes would comprise 50 percent of all new homes. Over the 14-year period shown in the chart on the previous page we still saw 528 fewer single-family homes built than MAPC projected we need.

A concept called Missing Middle Housing is helpful to frame the types of homes that we have left out. Coined by Daniel Parolekiii, the concept illustrates the types of older homes that are prevalent in Lowell. However, many of these homes are difficult to build under today’s Zoning Code. In the image above, the single-family and larger apartment buildings are relatively easier to build. However, the duplexes, triple-deckers, and other smaller multi-family buildings are more difficult.

The subsequent pages will outline ways that the City can modify zoning to enable more missing middle housing construction. We intend this list to stimulate a discussion of which specific reforms to

iii Parolek is a principal at Opticos, an architecture, design, and urban planning firm.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 9 III. ZONING REFORMS

Zoning is an essential tool to deliver a range of safe, fair, high quality, and affordable housing. In the subsequent pages, we outline the ways that zoning can advance this goal by describing a series of reforms that fit into one of five categories:

A. Rezoning B. Dimensional Requirements C. Allowed Uses D. New Ordinances E. Revised Sections

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 10 A. Rezoning

The three potential reforms in this section focus on redrawing the boundaries of existing zoning districts to increase the coverage of districts that allow more housing:

1. Legalize more housing types in more places 2. Expand the Downtown Mixed-Use (DMU) zone 3. Reevaluate riverfront zoning

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 11

Map of Types of Housing Permitted

■ Single-family Districts ■ Multi-Family (2+) Districts ■ No Housing Permitted

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 12

1. Legalize More Housing Types in More Places

The map on the previous page reveals that only single-family homes exclusively for single-families. The effect is to restrict most parts of can be built on two-thirds of all land zoned for housing in the the city to a type of housing that can support the fewest families and Lowell. Most of Pawtucketville and Belvidere as well as the majority households. These types of homes are also the most expensive.12 of the Highlands and Centralville neighborhoods only permit single- family homes. Many residents value single-family homes for their The zoning maps below show the same part of the Highlands and added privacy, the opportunity to have a larger yard, and more space. Lower Highlands in the 1985, 2004, and 2019 zoning maps. In 34 However, restricting extensive areas to only single-families blocks the years, the area went from allowing multi-family housing as an M1 incremental increases in intensity that have occurred over the nearly district, to only two-family housing as a TF district, and finally a mix 10,000 years of urban history.11 of single-family, two-family, and multi-family by 2019, with the majority of land reserved for exclusively single-family housing (SSF In short, as land values rise, owners would shrink their lots to and USF). As Section B1 will show, many areas that theoretically accommodate more homes, add stories or carriage houses on a lot with allow multi-family housing actually prevent such as housing due to an existing home, and ultimately some lots would eventually feature steep dimensional requirements (e.g., minimum lot sizes).

apartment buildings. In recent decades, the trend has been the Reserving a supermajority of residential land for single-family homes opposite. Instead of accommodating more types of housing on more is not a Lowell phenomenon, but the practice is now receiving scrutiny parts of the city, we first established and then extended land zoned elsewhere. Campaigners have highlighted that the roots of exclusively

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 13

single-family zoning stem from the federal legacy of redlining and racist housing covenants, with the effect that single-family zoning often excludes Black, Indigenous, and Peoples of Color.13,14 Many cities are starting to grapple with this legacy and are legalizing more types of homes in more places. In December 2018, Minneapolis legalized three-family homes citywide.15 In August 2020, Portland, OR legalized market rate four-family homes citywide and six-family homes if the developer meets affordability thresholds.16 The Newton City Council is also now exploring ways to allow more housing types near to transit.17 Next month, Arlington, MA will vote at town meeting on whether to eliminate single-family zoning citywide.18

Reevaluating the boundaries of single-family zones to allow more types of housing in more places is essential to increasing housing construction. Allowing an owner to convert their home into a duplex or to build an accessory dwelling unit does not mean that every single- family home will transform overnight (or ever) Single-family homes The same building envelope accommodates 1-8 units. Image by Opticos will remain legal in these districts. Individuals would just have the flexibility to add homes. As the rendering on the right shows, regulating the maximum building envelope/form can ensure that missing middle housing is no larger than their single-family peers.19 The number and types of homes depends on which other zoning changes we adopt.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 14 2. Expand the Downtown Mixed-Use (DMU) Zone

The boundaries of the Urban Mixed-Use (UMU) and DMU districts are not always recognizable on the ground. However, the allowances for home building in both districts differ. For example, the UMU has stricter dimensional and higher parking requirements, which may discourage infill redevelopment of parcels. Extending the DMU into certain areas of the UMU may unlock the potential of these sites for housing.

For example, in the JAM neighborhood only Appleton Street is excluded from the DMU, while Jackson and Middlesex are included. In addition, the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments evaluated Upper Merrimack/Pawtucket streets and concluded that we Upper Merrimack at the Western Canal looking toward City Hall in 1919. Lowell National should extend the DMU to all parcels along Merrimack Street from Historical Park photo. Dutton Street/Arcand Drive to Suffolk Street (currently zoned UMU).20 NMCOG specifically noted the flexibility that DMU would provide to builders. To increase housing, we could evaluate rezoning these and other adjacent streets as DMU.

Upper Merrimack from the same location in 2019 reveals a loss of housing and increase in surface parking lots. © Google Streetview

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 15 3. Reevaluate Riverfront Zoning

Many areas along the Merrimack River are zoned single-family or for only up to six residences on a lot. Building along the river can be difficult because of the expense of complying with the Wetlands Protection Act, which requires 1:1 compensation for any loss of flood storage for fill in the floodplain. At scale, builders can spread the cost of infiltration basins and other flood control devices across multiple units, which can make these projects feasible.

The Grandview Apartments are one example of the types of apartment or condominium buildings that we could permit if we extended the Suburban Neighborhood Mixed-Use zoning district (SMU) or other multi-family districts along the river. Since the Grandview is in the floodplain, it is unlikely that a smaller residential development would have been feasible in that location. Projects of this scale would require approval from a land use board, which creates an opportunity to condition the project on the developer contributing to community benefits (e.g., river walk trails) and change the way the city greets the river.

Built in 2006, the Grandview Apartments are entirely within the floodplain and needed Conservation Commission approval to provide compensatory flood storage through a storage vault and detention basin. © Grandview Apartments

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 16

B. Dimensional Requirements

The four reforms in this section focus on revising the existing dimensional requirements to permit homes on smaller lots, bigger homes on the same lot, and reduce or eliminate the parking requirements that increase housing costs directly and use land that could instead be housing:

1. Revise requirements to reflect existing or desired pattern 2. Increase maximum allowed floor area ratios (FARs) 3. Increase maximum allowed building heights and stories 4. Eliminate or reduce off-street parking minimums

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 17

1. Revise Requirements to Reflect Existing or Desired Pattern

Frequently, we field inquiries from residents who believe that they code prevents owners from constructing new ones or converting have a buildable lot adjacent to their home or asking how they could existing buildings today. Even though the TMF allows for up to six convert their two-family to a three-family, like all the others in the units on one lot, the chart below reveals that over 40 percent of lots in neighborhood. However, the minimum lot size, lot area per dwelling the TMF are too small per the Code to allow even one home (white unit, frontage, setbacks, and usable open space requirements (i.e., the portion), let alone six. “dimensional requirements”) often prevent residents from building or expanding without obtaining variances from the Zoning Board. Number of Homes Allowed per Lot as a Percent of All TMF Lots

■ 0 homes ■ 1 home ■ 2 homes ■ 3 homes ■ 4 homes ■ 5 homes ■ 6 homes

While the Zoning Code aims to preserve the character of neighborhoods, building a two-family or a triple decker that conforms to the current lot size requirements would be anomalous. The net effect is that almost no lots are large enough to meet the current requirements for multi-family, missing middle homes. This situation is not unique to

Three-family homes on 2,068 sq. ft. and 2,949 sq. ft. lots in Centralville (left) the TMF. The current requirements for the TTF zoning district mean and the Acre (right). © Google Streetview that the Code deems 96 percent of lots as too small to accommodate a two-family home. Lowellians love their neighborhoods and many For example, building a triple decker—a New England archetypal would be surprised to learn that the Code makes them illegal to rebuild housing style—now requires 12,000 sq. ft. of land in the Traditional today. We could revise the dimensional requirements to legalize Neighborhood Multi-Family (TMF) district. However, 93 percent of existing neighborhoods and allow people to add incrementally more lots in the TMF are smaller than 12,000 sq. ft. Building a two- homes like their peers. family home in the TMF is not much easier. The code would require a lot with at least 8,000 sq. ft., but 82 percent of lots in the TMF are too small. Many preexisting, non-conforming two and three-families are on lots that are smaller than 8,000 sq. ft. and 12,000 sq. ft., but the

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 18

2. Increase Maximum Allowed Floor Area Ratios (FARs)

The Gross Floor Area of a home divided by the size of the lot equals Estimated FARs in the TSF and USF Zoning Districts the FAR. Essentially, a one-story home that is the size of its lot would have an FAR of 1.0. Establishing a maximum FAR is one way to control the size of a home to ensure that buildings are similar to their neighbors. In 2019, we conducted an analysis at the request of the Zoning Board to see how the current maximum FAR requirements relate to the buildings on the ground.

Today, the vast majority of homes in the TSF (71%) and USF (75%) zoning districts exceed the maximum FARs.iv The box plot on the right shows the range, median, upper quartile, and lower quartile of estimated FARs for existing housing in the TSF and USF zoning districts. If we increased the maximum FAR by 0.30 in the TSF to 0.65 and by 0.45 in the USF to 1.25, then 75 percent of homes in each district would conform to the requirement. ■ TSF ■ USF

Changing the allowable FAR in these districts to match the real world conditions would enable households to add living space equivalent to their neighbors. If coupled with other changes, higher FARs would also enable new homes. In addition, both the DMU and UMU have maximum FARs of 4.0. Allowing higher FARs in the DMU and UMU would enable buildings, like the Board-approved project at 160 Middlesex Street to avoid needing a Variance to build a five-story building with 24 apartments.

iv TSF = Traditional Neighborhood Single-Family USF = Urban Neighborhood Single-Family

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 19 3. Increase Maximum Allowed Building Heights and Stories 4. Eliminate or Reduce Off-Street Parking Minimums

Allowing more housing types in more districts may not lead to many Parking is expensive to build and maintain. The average surface new homes if a building cannot be taller than 32-ft. and 2.5 stories. For parking space costs $5-10,000 to construct and the average garage example, the four-family missing middle housing type may not fit in space costs $25,000-50,000.23 Parking also occupies a lot of land that that constrained envelope. In the first year since Minneapolis legalized could become housing. UCLA Professor Donald Shoup calculated that triplexes citywide, the City has only issued three building permits for the average parking space plus its drive aisle occupies 300-350 sq. ft. them. A director at the Minneapolis Area Realtors association relayed of space, so 600-700 sq. ft. for 2 parking spaces.24 This space for the challenge: “‘the underlying code was still written with single- parking can exceed the size of the home and increases the square family homes in mind. Height restrictions are the same’” (emphasis footage that a household is on the hook to rent, thereby increasing the added).21 Writing at Vox, Matthew Yglesias noted the potential for total rental costs—whether or not the household owns a car. In unleashing two late 19th century technologies—Bessemer steel and addition, many of these off-street spaces are unnecessary. elevators—to fit more homes on the same plot of land by building up.22 We are not ready to recommend new height limits, but revisiting MAPC found that 30 percent of parking spaces were empty overnight the existing ones is an important step. at nearly 200 multifamily residential buildings and that affordable housing developments averaged only 0.55 cars per household.25 Most, but not all households have access to a car in Lowell. Eighteen percent of households do not have a car and an additional 40 percent only have access to one.26 In virtually all zoning districts, the requirement is two spaces per household or 0.75 spaces per bedroom, whichever is greater. For 60 percent of households, this requirement is too high.

Requiring off-street parking, often in excess of actual demand, covers more land in asphalt and helps to ensure affordable parking but expensive housing. Recognizing this cost, Cities like Buffalo, NY27; Hartford, CT;28 and Edmonton, AB29 have recently eliminated all mandatory parking minimums. Instead of using zoning to limit the number of homes per lot as a tool to regulate parking, we could instead regulate parking directly. Recently, the State awarded us a Housing Choice grant to conduct a citywide parking study.v The study will evaluate pricing, residential parking passes, zoning requirements, and result in recommendations for commercial corridors and neighborhood streets. This study will inform potential changes to the parking requirements.

v Making parking studies eligible for Housing Choice grants underscores the connection between parking and housing. Further details are available at: https://www.mass.gov/orgs/housing-choice-initiative

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 20 C. Table of Uses

The Article XII: Table of Uses specifies the types of homes that builders can construct or convert in each zoning district. The four reforms in this section would allow more types of homes in the existing districts:

1. Allow multi-family homes of a certain size by right 2. Permit more housing in the Regional Retail (RR) district 3. Allow manufactured (mobile) homes 4. Allow More Single Room Occupancy (SRO) housing

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 21 1. Allow Multi-Family Homes of a Certain Size by Right

Ten zoning districts permit multi-family housing with four or more could allow multi-family homes with four or fewer units by right. units.vi To encourage denser housing, some of these districts prohibit Doing so would simplify converting existing duplexes into triplexes smaller buildings or require Special Permits to construct developments and triplexes into fourplexes. Coupled with changes to the dimensional with fewer units. For example, the Suburban Neighborhood Multi- requirements, eliminating the Special Permit for missing middle Family (SMF) zoning district requires Special Permits for any project housing would generate incremental increases in the number of homes with three or fewer units, but allows projects with four or more units in the same neighborhoods where these types of homes already exist by right. However, in most cases the code requires Special Permits for today. proposals to build three or more units on one lot. For example, building or converting to a three-family in the Traditional Neighborhood Multi-Family (TMF) zoning district requires a Special Permit from the Planning Board. Special Permits signal that the code allows a particular use, but that extra scrutiny is necessary to ensure that the specific site is appropriate for that use.

The downside of Special Permits is that they add time, expense, and uncertainty to projects, which means that many projects never start. At the fastest, the Planning or Zoning Board approval process takes two months. That timeline allows for submission prior to the hearing to meet public notice requirements and the 20-day statutory appeal period following a decision. Discussing the project at more than one hearing lengthens this process. The two-thirds supermajority required to obtain a Special Permit creates the uncertainty factor. On each Board, the supermajority means that applicants must receive at least a 4-1 affirmative vote. Following a vote, the risk of appeal adds further uncertainty and opportunity to delay or prevent a project.

The delay and uncertainty prior to applying for a building permit can make financing small-scale, missing middle type projects challenging for local builders.30 In addition, a homeowner looking to add a third unit to their basement or attic will often shy away from the daunting prospect of seeking permission from a land use board. Reevaluating the trigger for Special Permits can help to mitigate these challenges and foster more small-scale housing production. For example, the code

vi The districts are the SMF, SMU, TMF, TMU, NB, UMU, DMU, HRC, and INST. The HRC district only allows housing with seven or more units on one lot.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 22 2. Permit More Housing in the Regional Retail (RR) District

The Regional Retail (RR) zoning district is a primarily commercial be able to work, shop, and eat at the neighborhood’s businesses district with an auto-oriented development pattern. Today, the Zoning without needing to travel from a distant home. When revising the RR Code only permits two types of long-term housing: senior congregate district, we would need to deliberate on the maximum number of housing and buildings with one to two apartments above a non- stories/heights, apartments, and off-street parking requirements. For residential use on the ground floor. Since almost all of the customers projects requiring land use board approval, we could recommend and employees need to travel to these businesses, this largely conditioning approval on building better sidewalks, adding street exclusively commercial district generates many more car trips than furniture, and installing bus shelters. would be necessary if the buildings also included residences.

Allowing more housing in the district could still preserve the commercial character by requiring that housing only exist on the second floor or above and that non-residential uses remain on the ground floor. Traveling down the RR corridors reveals many one-story buildings that could satisfy this requirement by adding a story or two of apartments to new upper floors. The photo and rendering below show one way to convert these one-story shopping centers into two- or three-story buildings with housing on the upper floors.

RR zoning does not allow replacing the parking and vacant lots (left) with the 45 homes shown in the above proposal (right)

One-story commercial building on Chelmsford Street today with hypothetical residences above in a RR zoning district. Photo © Google Streetview, rendering by DPD

Mixing residential and commercial would also advance Professor Carlos Moreno’svii concept of the “15-minute city” which aims to provide most daily needs within a short walk from home.31 Instead of adding to our traffic congestion, residents of the improved RR would

vii Carlos Moreno is a Professor at Sorbonne University and the Mayor of Paris’ Special Representative for Smart Cities.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 23 3. Allow Manufactured (Mobile) Homes 4. Allow More Single Room Occupancy (SRO)

In August 2016, the Council passed an ordinance that banned Single-room occupancy (SRO) is a type of housing in which people manufactured (mobile) homes citywide. In that same year, the number rent individual bedrooms within a building that has common kitchens, of mobile homes sold nationally increased 15 percent compared to the bathrooms, and other living areas. The common names for SROs are previous year. Part of the recent popularity is the cost. A mobile home rooming or boarding houses. In pop culture, SROs are common. averages “$292,600 less than a site-built home.”32 Stigmas against Klaatu rents a room in a DC boarding house in The Day the Earth mobile homes have blocked new mobile home communities. However, Stood Still. Arnold lives in his grandparents’ boarding house in the researchers have found that mobile home communities had the “lowest animated Nickelodeon show Hey Arnold! Yet, outside of film and TV, rate of violent crime calls for service” compared to other types of SROs have received a reputation for antisocial behavior. housing for people at similar income levels.33 Sarah Baird writing for Curbed notes that mobile home communities use “collective identity Since WWII, most American cities have made SROs illegal or greatly and (relative) close proximity as a communal safety net” and often limited the areas where people can build them.35 Today, we allow serve specific communities such as LGBT+ individuals and people SROs in just seven zoning districts and only by Special Permit.viii ages 55 and older.34 Banning SROs has not eliminated them or the affordable housing niche that they fulfill. The savings compared to a full-size apartment can be remarkable. An individual in the Bronx, NY paid the equivalent of $388 per month for an illegal SRO.36 We have illegal SROs in Lowell too. In 2019, Development Services cited eight illegal SROs. Of those, only one was in a district that provided a pathway to legalization. The other seven demonstrate a demand for this type of affordable housing, but by preventing their construction, we push them into the shadows where serious life safety risks can abound. By legalizing them, we can both provide affordable housing and ensure that the residents have a safe place to live.

To avoid the antisocial behavior that has occurred at SROs, we can revise the regulations to require live-in superintendents and appropriate common areas based on the number of units. The status Cluster of mobile “tiny” homes in Northeast DC. © Taufiq Media quo is untenable because each time we play whack-a-mole with a new illegal SRO, we send tenants into potentially less safe conditions as We do not have ample open land for largescale mobile home they look for alternative, affordable housing. communities. Such a development pattern is also not appropriate for the 5th-largest City in Massachusetts and one where land is increasingly at a premium. However, allowing relatively small clusters of mobile homes on smaller lots is certainly one way to use zoning to facilitate affordable housing construction. viii The districts are SMU, TMU, NB, UMF, UMU, DMU and INST.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 24 D. New Ordinances

The preceding reforms would modify existing sections of the Zoning Code. In contrast, the five reforms in this section would introduce new concepts to the Code:

1. Allow accessory dwelling units 2. Issue zoning amnesty for illegal units 3. Adopt an ordinance to permit use variances 4. Pass an inclusionary zoning ordinance 5. Adopt an affordable housing overlay

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 25 1. Allow Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)

Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) is the official term for apartments On two recent occasions, the Council has declined to adopt an ADU built within a primary dwelling or in a separate detached building. ordinance. In 2006, staff submitted an ordinance that would have Alternative names include in-law apartments, granny flats, and allowed ADUs by special permit in the three exclusively single-family carriage houses. The rendering on the right from Saint Paul, MN’s districts.ix In 2017, the Zoning Subcommittee tabled a narrow ADU Planning Department shows possible locations of ADUs. ordinance that would have limited ADUs to owner-occupied, single- family homes for immediate family members only. Many communities Where adopted, communities typically regulate the maximum allowed in Greater Boston allow ADUs. size and locations of the ADU. Some communities regulate who can live in an ADU (e.g., immediate family members) or require that the owner reside in the primary dwelling or ADU. Currently, we allow ADUs as an accessory use by Special Permit from the Zoning Board in the Urban Neighborhood Single-Family (USF) zoning district. However, the undefined term only appears in the Table of Accessory Uses and a review of the Zoning Board applications reveals that no one has applied to build one.

A well-designed ADU ordinance has several benefits. As MAPC reports, ADUs permit seniors to age-in-place, provide choices for smaller households, offer low-cost housing for young adults, give homeowners a source of long-term rental income, are naturally occurring affordable housing, enable incremental increases in housing without greatly affecting neighborhood character, and attract people of different backgrounds who can add to the vibrancy of the local economy.37 ADUs have received significant attention in other high- cost housing markets.

Image from the City of Saint Paul, MN In 2017, California adopted an ordinance that allowed ADUs statewide and refined the ordinance in 2020 to reduce regulatory hurdles and to In 2018, the Pioneer Institute evaluated the 100 communities of 38 permit up to two ADUs on each property. Portland, OR has a Greater Boston and found that 37 permitted ADUs for rent, 31 allowed permissive ADU ordinance that allows them in all residential and temporary ADUs for family members, and 32 did not allow any commercial districts, enables them to be up to 75% of the living area ADUs.40 However, in communities that allowed ADUs, the strict of the primary dwelling unit or 800 sq. ft., and do not require requirements meant that each municipality only averaged 2.5 new additional off-street parking. As a result, Portland had permitted over 2,000 ADUs from 2010-2018.39 ix The districts were the Suburban Neighborhood Single-Family (SSF), Traditional Neighborhood Single-Family (TSF), and Urban Neighborhood Single-Family (USF).

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 26 2. Issue Zoning Amnesty for Illegal Units

ADUs per year. The author concluded, “Every municipality should Development Services investigates new reports of suspected illegal allow ADUs to be added to owner-occupied single-family houses and housing units every week. When we show up at the door, the residents to be rented out” with the potential to house thousands of people rarely realize that their rental is illegal. To them, the room or through a barely noticeable change. apartment is just home. Barring zoning restrictions, many of these units could become safe housing. However, when we find an illegal These examples underscore the decision points for ADUs: size, two-family in a single-family district or an illegal third unit in a two- number, districts, parking, attached/detached, owner-occupied, and by family district the owners have no pathway to convert the spaces into right or special permit. Ordinances that are more permissive will legal residences. Such visits by Development Services staff ultimately naturally lead to more ADUs, so the Council would need to determine leads to fewer total housing units, thereby exacerbating the existing which criteria would be appropriate for Lowell. Communities that housing shortage. have adopted ADU ordinances that produce new homes, like Portland, have iterated and continually revised their ordinances to achieve Establishing an amnesty program for illegal units can bring these desired outcomes and respond to unforeseen barriers. If the Council residences out of the shadows and into building code compliance. now believes that the benefits of an ADU ordinance are worth Since these illegal units already exist, offering amnesty will not lead to reevaluating, then we have a new draft ready to start the discussion. a significant increase in housing. However, the program can preserve existing housing. The program could also avoid tragic episodes where an emergency leads to avoidable injury because undiscovered illegal apartments do not have adequate means of egress, insulation, etc. To avoid a scramble to create illegal units, the program could specify needing to demonstrate longstanding occupancy and to satisfy all current life/safety and building code requirements.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 27 3. Adopt an Ordinance to Permit Use Variances 4. Pass an Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance

Under state law, to grant a variance for a use that the zoning code does Inclusionary Zoning (IZ) is a tool that leverages private developments not permit we must first adopt an ordinance that permits “use to create new income-restricted housing. As of 2013, the U.S. variances.” We do not allow use variances, so an owner of a two- Department of Housing and Urban Development reported that over family building in the Traditional Neighborhood Two-Family (TTF) 400 jurisdictions had adopted some form of IZ.42 The tool has become zoning district does not have a pathway to convert the building into a increasingly popular, as tightening budgets have reduced the capacity three-family home. We frequently disappoint homeowners in such for the public sector to construct income-restricted housing directly. situations who may see three-family (or larger) buildings on their block. Three-family buildings in the TTF surprise owners, but they are The principle of IZ is that either by providing incentives or through more surprised that they cannot convert their homes to match their new requirements, private developers will build new income-restricted neighbors. However, as the boundaries of zoning districts change, housing as a percentage of the total number of new units on a site. The countless examples exist of uses that are legally preexisting, non- incentive approach, would allow a developer to build taller, bigger, or conforming. If an owner of a three-family building in the TTF more units depending on the number of income-restricted units a converted it to a two-family, then after two years they would lose project includes. In contrast, an IZ requirement mandates that for preexisting, non-conforming status and the building could never again projects of a certain size, a developer must include income-restricted become a three-family. A use variance ordinance would provide a units and/or pay in lieu of units to a fund used to construct or subsidize narrow pathway in these instances to allow two-family buildings to income-restricted units. The exact approach varies considerably by become three-family buildings, etc. community. If done correctly, the density benefits for adding income- restricted housing offsets the costs of constructing that housing at The upside of use variances is that they provide flexibility, which may below market value. If done incorrectly, the costs to the developer do be valuable in-between overhauling the zoning code and map. The risk not offset the benefits and may suppress homebuilding.43 is that the ordinance would not only apply to housing, but to any use. If adopted, applicants would still need to demonstrate that they meet Since 2000, Boston has had an IZ ordinance that applies to projects the three criteria for a variance, including that the soil, shape, or with 10 or more units. In most cases, 13 percent of the units in the topography creates a special hardship that necessitates the variance. In project would need to be income-restricted within the same building, one example, the Essex County Court of Appeals upheld a decision by at a nearby site, or via a payment in lieu of units into the City’s Rockport’s Zoning Board to grant a use variance so that the applicant Inclusionary Development Policy Fund. As of last year, builders had could construct a multi-family building in a single-family district.41 created nearly 2,600 income-restricted units and the fund sponsored The Court agreed with the Zoning Board that the location of the lot over 1,400 more.44 Similar to Boston, the City of Beverley requires 10 along the coast would make building a single-family home infeasible percent of units in projects with 10 or more buildings to be income- due to the cost of building a seawall, complex foundation, etc., thereby restricted and eligible for inclusion in the City’s subsidized housing presenting a special hardship. Notably, Rockport still permits use inventory. Builders may also contribute a payment-in-lieu of housing, variances today.x with the payment ranging from $111,300 to $1.3 million based on the neighborhood.45 The Council could evaluate these examples from other communities and determine whether to proceed with an incentive x The statement in the Zoning Code, as updated through September 2014 is “This Zoning or requirement-based system and the specific triggers and benefits. Bylaw specifically permits the Board of Appeals to grant variances for use in any district.”

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 28 5. Adopt an Affordable Housing Overlay

One common critique of new housing is that it is luxury and unfordable to existing residents. Opponents to a market rate project may argue that they would support the new housing if the builder proposed 100 percent income-restricted units. Cambridge decided to target that argument directly. After a two-year process, the city passed an Affordable Housing Overlay in October 2020 that allows multi- family projects of up to four stories by right in all residential zoning districts and up to seven stories in business districts.46

The overlay allows incremental increases in massing, building heights, and relaxes other dimensional requirements for projects in which units are affordable up to 100 percent of the area median income.47 The buildings may also include non-residential uses on the ground floors and the code does not stipulate a minimum parking requirement. However, if the project does not provide at least 0.4 parking spaces per unit, then the builder would need to submit a Transportation Demand Management plan.xi This new overlay confronts opposition to new housing based solely on affordability. Since the Cambridge City Council just adopted the change, we do not yet know whether it will achieve its objective. However, the Cities of Somerville and Newton are now exploring similar ordinances.48

xi A transportation demand management plan defines polices and investments that a project will make to discourage people from owning a car and/or driving alone.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 29 E. Revise Sections

The seven possible zoning changes outlined in this final section would apply existing progressive housing ordinances to more buildings and districts, clarify which types of projects need Planning Board review, and redefine the family to acknowledge the variety of household types:

1. Amend the definition of a family 2. Revise Section 8.1 to again include all large buildings 3. Increase the threshold for site plan review 4. Revise the planned residential development ordinance 5. Reevaluate the downtown smart growth overlay district 6. Delete the neighborhood character special permit

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 30 1. Amend the Definition of a Family

The Zoning Code specifies that only one family may live in each individuals are related. The wide variety of family types also means home. The code further defines family to determine who counts. Most that the existing restriction might discriminate against non-nuclear zoning codes include a number of unrelated individuals in the families, which are a supermajority of households. Finally, when we definition of a family, which accounts for unmarried people living are able to hold owners to this requirement, we may exacerbate the with significant others, young adults who are cohabitating, au pairs housing shortage by emptying bedrooms that otherwise meet all and live-in staff, and other housing arrangements. Recognizing these building and sanitary code requirements. types of living arrangements is vital, as AARP has found that “only 20 percent of American households are nuclear families.”49 Still, each Past Zoning Subcommittee conversations about the definition of a community defines family in a different way. family have focused on the risks of a broader definition leading to homes with four or more undergraduate students, all with cars. While Currently, our Zoning Code allows an unlimited number of related this scenario is possible, the existing definition of family does not individuals to live together in a home, provided they meet all relevant preclude an unlimited number of related adults and children from sanitary and building code requirements. Our Code further specifies sharing a home and all owning cars. Competition for on-street parking that up to three unrelated individuals can constitute a family and share can be fierce in some neighborhoods. However, instead of restricting a home. This restriction is a decrease that occurred during the last the size and types of households to reduce on-street parking demand, overhaul of our Code. Prior to 2004, up to four unrelated individuals we should reevaluate and extend residential parking districts.xiii In could constitute a family. short, if our concern is parking, then we should regulate parking.

We reviewed the definition of family in 23 cities and towns in Massachusetts, which we selected based on overall population, density, and proximity to Lowell. Six communities had definitions that were more restrictive, six allowed the same number of unrelated individuals, and 11 allowed more unrelated individuals to live together and be a family. The table on the next page shows a summary for these 11 communities:xii

Broadening the definition of family would legalize many of the existing housing arrangements in Lowell. Routinely, our Board Enforcement Agent must cite property owners for renting residences to more than three unrelated individuals. However, enforcing this requirement is challenging because the City does not have a mechanism for assessing relationship statuses to determine whether

xiii Aside from extending residential parking districts, we could charge a graduated fee for each xii The six communities with the same restriction are Cambridge, Lawrence, Quincy, permit. For example, the first permit could be free, the second could cost $100, and the third Springfield, Winthrop, and Worcester. The six communities that are more restrictive are $500, and so on. The higher fee would encourage more residents to park off-street or Brockton, Haverhill, Malden, New Bedford, Revere, and Salem. discourage them from choosing a residence if they had hoped to bring a car and park for free.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 31

Number of Unrelated Individuals Included in the Definition of Family by Municipality

Municipality # Unrelated Notes Population Density Arlington * No limit if they attest to being a household 42,800 8,200 Boston * No limit, but only up to four undergraduate students may form a household 692,600 14,300

Gloucester 5 30,400 1,200 Everett 4 Four adults plus up to four related children 46,500 13,600 Somerville 4 - 81,400 19,700

Chelsea 4 - 39,700 17,900 Brookline 4 - 59,300 3,300 Fall River 4 - 89,500 2,700

Lynn 4 - 94,300 8,800 Watertown 4 - 35,900 9,000 Newton 3 Related by blood plus up to three boarders 88,400 5,000

Lowell 3 - 111,000 8,100

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 32

2. Revise Section 8.1 to Again Include all Large Buildings

Section 8.1 enables developers to convert certain large existing 236 Fairmount Street in Belvidere is an over 14,000 sq. ft. single- structures into more residences than the underlying zoning allows. family home in the Suburban Neighborhood Single-Family (SSF) When first adopted, this section allowed developers to convert any zoning district. Built for a titan of industry, the building may now be large residential structure that was at least 60 years old into two or unwieldy for a single family to occupy and maintain. Re-extending more dwelling units by Special Permit. The proposal had to meet Section 8.1 to encompass large residential structures could help to conditions on parking, open space, building alteration, and minimum preserve this early 1880’s stone building by converting the interior into unit size. During the 2004 overhaul, the Council restricted this section two or more units. Similarly, the 13,000 sq. ft. and vacant 1890’s to large structures that were previously part of a mill complex, served building at 129 Branch Street is difficult to rehabilitate under current a religious or educational purpose, or used as a fire station. Despite zoning as it is within a restrictive two-family zoning district. Changing trends toward smaller apartments, the change also increased the Section 8.1 to encompass comparable historic structures that were not minimum unit sizes from 630 sq. ft. to 750 sq. ft. for studio or one- part of mills, religious institutions, schools, or fire stations would help bedroom apartments and from 800 sq. ft. to 900 sq. ft. for two or more to transform blighted properties like 129 Branch Street and provide bedroom apartments.50 In 2017, the ordinance changed again to define sorely needed housing. large structures as those that are 5,000 sq. ft. or bigger. If the Council extends Section 8.1 to large residential structures and Several recent projects have obtained Special Permits under Section other buildings, we would need to evaluate appropriate thresholds. For 8.1 to deliver dozens of new homes. For example, a developer has example, over 430 homes in the SSF, TSF, USF, TTF, TMF, and UMF converted the former Varnum School in Centralville into 30 units. This exceed 10,000 sq. ft. An additional 2,300 are 5,000 sq. ft. or larger. A project would not have been possible without Section 8.1, as the subset of these are homes are at least 60 years old. Setting the underlying zoning district is for two-family buildings. However, this minimum building size and age would mean more or fewer homes. For pathway does not exist for many other large, historic buildings in the other large structures, we might exclude certain districts, such as Light City. The photos below are just two of many examples. Industrial and General Industrial, as adding homes to those districts may create avoidable conflicts between industry and residents. Finally, we could modify the minimum unit sizes. 750 sq. ft. is huge for a studio apartment and even exceeds the average size of a one-bedroom. Each additional square foot translates into higher housing costs through both rents based on size and by needing to amortize the cost of converting the structure over fewer units. If the Council would like to reconsider Section 8.1, then we have a draft ready to inform the discussion.

236 Fairmount Street (left) in the SSF and 129 Branch Street (right) in the TTF. © Google Streetview

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 33 3. Increase the Threshold for Site Plan Review 4. Revise the Planned Residential Development Ordinance

Site Plan Review is a type of approval for evaluating and addressing Section 8.2 of the Zoning Code empowers the City Council to approve building scale, site layout, transportation, stormwater, and other needs residential developments with less land required per lot in exchange of certain large-scale or high impact projects. One of our current for shared open spaces. This Planned Residential Development (PRD) triggers for Site Plan Review is constructing, exterior altering, ordinance is a narrow iteration of the Planned Unit Development converting, or expanding any residential structure or structures with (PUD). While the PRD ordinance only allows single- and two-family more than three dwelling units. Similar to the challenges presented by residential structures plus some educational or non-profit facilities, a Special Permit approval, this trigger adds time, expense, and new PUD ordinance would enable mixed-use, multi-family projects. uncertainty to all residential projects with four or more units— including projects to add one unit to an existing three-family home. MGL Chapter 40A§9 specifies that PUDs must have the lesser of 60,000 sq. ft. of land area or five times the minimum lot size of the Since nearly all multi-family residential projects require Board underlying zoning district. Our ordinance would then need to specify approval via a Special Permit and/or Variance, we could raise the the conditions under which the permit granting authority could deem threshold for Site Plan Review to focus on larger residential apartment the proposal “sufficiently advantageous” to deviate from the normal buildings or condominiums without sacrificing an opportunity for requirements of the zoning district. Allowing a builder to deviate from public and Board comment. Other communities already have higher the underlying zoning increases the value of a parcel. thresholds. For example, the City of Brockton’s trigger is seven or more dwelling units. In Boston, the trigger is 15 or more dwelling Since the potential benefit is considerable, PUD review involves units. Increasing the threshold would not exempt builders from zoning negotiating community benefits and amenities that the project requirements, such as setbacks and parking, and builders would still proponents will provide through direct construction or contributions to need to receive full approval from Development Services under the targeted funds for specific projects. For example, the approval could building and sanitary codes. In addition, the Fire Department would stipulate space for specific uses such as a grocery store or municipal still evaluate the project for life/safety concerns, and the Engineering facility (e.g., school, library, police station, community center). The Division, Water Utility, and Wastewater Utility would continue to negotiation could also address parks and recreation as well as review and approve new paving, utility connections, and stormwater transportation needs. While, few large greenfield sites exist in the City, interventions. many huge surface parking lots meet the criteria for a PUD. Adopting this type of ordinance would create an incentive to redevelop those sites into mixed-use developments that include housing.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 34 5. Reevaluate the Downtown Smart Growth Overlay District 6. Rescind the Neighborhood Character Special Permit

We are one of 41 municipalities in Massachusetts that have adopted a In 2006, the Council adopted Section 9.4 to require a Special Permit smart growth overlay district. As authorized by MGL Ch. 40R, the from the Planning Board when a project will result in two or more objective of these districts is to “create dense residential or mixed-use” dwelling units on a lot where at least one existed prior to the effective development that includes “a high percentage of affordable housing date of the ordinance. This provision applies to any projects in the units… located near transit stations, in areas of concentrated TTF, TMF, TMU, UMF, or UMU zoning districts regardless of development such as existing city and town centers.”51 whether or not constructing the additional dwelling unit would require the builder to demolish the existing building. In 2008, the MA Department of Housing and Community Development approved our 2.5-acre Downtown Smart Growth Simply converting a single-family to a two-family in the TTF triggers Overlay District that included just three former mill buildings. Today, this Special Permit, as does splitting a three-bedroom apartment into these buildings include a mix of market rate and affordable housing single- and two-bedroom apartments in the UMU. For the reasons units as well as the Lowell Community Health Center. described previously, this Special Permit again adds time, expense, and uncertainty to housing projects.

While the provision ostensibly exists to protect neighborhood character, the character of these five zoning districts is more likely to include multi-family housing. Yet the ordinance strives to protect single-family homes. As Professor Lance Freeman of Columbia University has noted, appeals to neighborhood character often mean excluding multi-family housing and the people who can afford to rent or own those homes.52 Removing this ordinance will not eliminate the historic districts and dimensional requirements that regulate construction, but they will remove at least one barrier to adding incrementally more housing and welcoming more residents of different backgrounds.

Boundaries of the current Smart Growth Overlay District in green

With the former mills within the original overlay district fully occupied, we could enlarge the existing boundaries to encompass new infill opportunities and/or designate entirely new districts.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 35 7. Clarify Neighborhood Character Review

One of the criteria for Special Permit approval is how a project advances the Master Plan’s goals for neighborhood character. In instances where a site is within a historic district and is subject to the approval of the Historic Board, this criterion can lead to disagreements with the Planning and Zoning Boards about which entity has jurisdiction over neighborhood character. The disagreement can then lead to confusion for the applicant as they try to meet conflicting requests. This confusion can delay projects.

To resolve this question of jurisdiction, the Council could amend the ordinance to state that in historic districts, the Historic Board will be primarily responsible for reviewing for neighborhood character. Specifically, the Zoning Code lists four questions for the Special Permit granting authority to consider and three of these should be the exclusive purview of the Historic Board:

• How does this project protect and enhance the character of the existing neighborhood? Successful projects should reflect the density, the urban design, the setbacks, height, and landscaping elements of surrounding buildings.

• How does this project provide for social, economic, or community needs? [Reserved for Planning Board]

• Is the project consistent with the character, materials, and scale of buildings in the vicinity?

• Does the project minimize the visual intrusion from visible parking, storage, and other outdoor service areas viewed from public ways and abutting residences?

The one question reserved for the Planning Board is less about the shape, massing, and layout of the project, and therefore less relevant for the Historic Board to review.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 36 I V. CONCLUSION AND NEXT STEPS

In 2019, the City’s total revenue was nearly $4 billion.53xiv If Lowell were a private company, the revenue would rank the city as bigger than Domino’s Pizza ($3.4B), Twitter ($3B), and Univision ($2.8B).54 These smaller companies invest in strategic planning to ensure their business decisions lead to sustained growth and survival. Housing is key to the portfolio of Lowell and zoning is an essential tool to encourage or forestall housing changes. While we could implement many of the simple changes without much further analysis, we should follow the lead of Lynn and other Gateway Cities by investing in a rigorous Housing Production Plan to identify specific changes—e.g., to zoning boundaries, dimensional requirements, and more—to ensure that the changes are appropriate for us.55

Each time we adopt changes without this level of rigor by increasing minimum lot sizes, extending single-family exclusivity, and banning housing types we create ripple effects that prevent thousands of new homes and new households from coming to Lowell. Not building those homes translates into the higher housing costs and rent burdens that most Lowellians experience today. To advance the goal of our master plan and provide a range of safe, fair, high quality, and affordable housing opportunities for residents of all backgrounds, we must change the zoning code to deliver housing in the types and quantity that meet our needs.

xiv Massachusetts Division of Local Services: Municipal Databank. The sum of the tax levy, state aid, local receipts, and all other sources of revenue.

Zoning for Housing in Lowell | 37

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