By Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

One of the central goals for our proposed zoning overhaul is to create more attainable housing here in Somerville. It’s no secret that the cost of housing in our city, like all of greater Boston, continues to rise. It puts enormous stress on our lower- and middle-income residents. Young families are struggling to buy homes that would allow them to raise their children in our community. Seniors are stretched to stay in the community where they’ve lived most of their lives. Many renters find themselves barely able to keep up with annual increases.

There are market forces beyond our control when it comes to putting housing prices within the grasp of more people. Buyers and renters are increasingly seeking walkable transit-oriented communities like Somerville. Meanwhile, our region is suffering from a chronic housing shortage. The greater Boston area needs to add 450,000 units in the next 25 years just to meet projected demand.  And as demand outpaces supply, driving up housing costs, City Hall cannot dictate private housing sale and rental prices.

Yet there are some things we can do to make housing more attainable for more people and much of that involves revamping our zoning. The zoning code is how we set the rules for what new housing gets built in our city and where. Through SomerVision, our community has set a goal to add 6,000 housing units by 2030. Our regional planning agency, MAPC, says we would need to add 9,000 new housing units by 2040 to do our part toward meeting regional housing needs.  But what kind of housing, and where? How do we put the greatest possible number of new units within the grasp of ordinary people? We may not be able to dictate the market, but we can set up local development rules that benefit lower- and middle-income residents regardless of where the market goes.

We took one step in that direction recently with the passage of a new inclusionary housing ordinance. Developments with more than 18 units will have to designate 20% of them as affordable (based on federal income guidelines). Developments with 8-17 units have to designate 17.5% as affordable. Developments with 6 or 7 units will have to pay linkage fees into the city’s affordable housing fund. To make sure some units in larger projects are also available to middle income residents, we also added a new income bracket to our affordable housing eligibility formula for those making up to 140 percent of area median income.

While all of those things are positive steps, inclusionary zoning is only one part of the solution. In our city’s experience, such regulations only create small numbers of new housing units. From 1990-2010, we saw only 75 new affordable units created via inclusionary housing. We created an additional 95 units between 2011-2014 thanks mostly to new developments like Assembly Row and Maxwell’s Green. Yet if that’s all we do, we are not going to be doing nearly enough.

That’s why we also need to overhaul our zoning code to include bonus provisions that would allow developers to build more units into a project if they include a higher percentage of family-sized units (3+ bedrooms) or provide more than 25% of new units as affordable units. We also want to simplify the permitting process to provide more certainty for developers in terms of how many units they can build. We need some carrots to go with the stick. Ultimately that’s going to get us more affordable and diverse housing.

Changing our parking requirements also can make a big difference when it comes to affordability. Parking adds to the cost of a project. That cost is often passed on to buyers and renters. Meanwhile, with the Green Line extension, 85% of our residents, and all of our transformational districts, will be within a half mile of a T station. More people will be able to get around without a car. So in our proposed zoning code, we’re looking to reduce parking space requirements for new buildings and in many cases unbundle parking from the project itself. That will help families, seniors, and young professionals who don’t want to own a car find appropriate housing that’s not charging them for a parking space they don’t need. And, parking also takes up valuable land that we’d rather see devoted to open space or commercial/residential development.

We all should be clear about the importance of reaching our SomerVision housing goals and meeting our portion of the regional housing need. The laws of supply and demand apply here. Most of our new housing will be built in transformational districts like Brickbottom and Boynton Yards, and it will be balanced against an influx of new jobs. If we fall well short of that number it means fewer affordable units get built, a less diverse mix of new units gets built, and our local housing inventory falls further behind demand, which increases local housing costs. The new zoning targets our old industrial areas as the primary locations for most of our new housing while making sure to preserve the character of our existing residential neighborhoods. Right now our developmental regulations lack the specificity needed to grow in a sensible fashion. We need a clear set of rules that allows us to embrace smart growth.

I want to stress the importance of the word “attainable” in describing what we’re trying to do here. We have a pressing need for what is legally defined as affordable housing. Our lower income residents need to have a place here if we want to retain the kind of economic and cultural diversity that sets us apart from many other communities. Yet our housing issues extend well into the middle class. We have done our level best to make Somerville an attractive, inviting community with safe neighborhoods, quality schools, and a stimulating environment. We want young families and long-time residents alike to stay here and enjoy that. We want to be a home to those who are getting started just as much as those who have already made it.

We pride ourselves in being an All-America City and we need to preserve the American Dream in Somerville. My family lived it when I was growing up. My parents came from modest means, worked hard, and found a home in this community. If we want to keep that door open, then we’ve got to put in place the zoning that enables the kind of targeted growth we need. It won’t happen by accident. Failing to respond to what is going on in the larger market will cause housing prices to spike. Housing in Somerville will be only as attainable as we make it.

If we truly value a community where lower- and middle-income residents can find a place, then we have to take action that goes well beyond our recent inclusionary housing ordinance. It’s the only way we can deliver on what we say we want to do. The achievability of our attainable housing goals walks hand-in-hand with the passage of new zoning for the city.