Outlining compliance with new community zoning requirements

Town of Dedham MBTA Communities (Section 3A) Impact Analysis

In summer of 2022, Massachusetts provided final guidelines to determine compliance with section 3A of the Zoning Act—the new requirement for every Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) community to have at least one zoning district for multi-family housing located near a transit station, if applicable. Our Community Development team’s goal? To enhance the welfare of people and their communities by creating convenient, equitable, efficient, and attractive environments that comply with this guideline.

How do we make this happen? Our team is comprised of experienced local professionals who have worked with various communities to assess state requirements, write zoning, and plan for multi-family housing development across Massachusetts. With an extensive knowledge of Massachusetts law and understanding of the new MBTA Communities regulatory structure—as well as the geographic information system (GIS) technical capacity to execute the calculations—we set out to assist the Town of Dedham by analyzing their land uses and figuring out how best to meet the new requirements. One metric to meet? Providing capacity for at least 1,569 dwelling units.

Dedham understands the need for encouraging new units in walkable neighborhoods near transit to address housing, transportation, and climate goals. Our impact analysis will help Dedham to create an optimum strategy to meet these goals without overburdening existing neighborhoods.