March 15, 2023
2023-03-15T19:30:00
(Zoom) Harvard Street Community Visioning Kick-Off 7:30 pm
Wednesday, March 15, 2023
HARVARD STREET
COMMUNITY VISIONING KICK-OFF
Virtual Public Meeting
Hosted by the Brookline Planning Board
March 15, 2023 at 7:30 pm
Register for meeting (CORRECT LINK)
https://brooklinema.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJIsceyhrjwjE4zUtuPA4TSV3nl3YivTRLo
The Department of Planning and Community Development (DPCD) invites you to a Community Visioning Kick-off for Harvard Street Zoning hosted by the Planning Board on March 15, 2023, at 7:30 pm via Zoom. Details for Zoom or phone call options are below.
For the past two years, DPCD has been studying regulatory barriers to and recommendations for facilitating multifamily and mixed-use development in Brookline. The first installment of the study is Harvard Street, an urban mixed-use neighborhood celebrated as a focal point for neighborhood retail, services, entertainment, and housing.
A core component of the Study is a block by block analysis of the neighborhood’s physical characteristics. The logic behind this approach is to identify positive and appealing characteristics to inform design standards in the updated zoning. Our key finding reveals that reinforcing a four-story scale in the base zoning using a form-based zoning approach would facilitate growth to sustain our commercial districts and reinforce the neighborhood’s physical identity, including incentivizing ground-floor retail space. The findings will be shared at the visioning kick-off to ask if these characteristics represent the walkable urban environment that community stakeholders want to see more of.
The analysis and full study are posted at https://brooklinema.gov/3582. Section 5.3 of the Study is the focus of the Visioning kick-off.
The passage of the MBTA Communities Act (“MBTACA”) in 2022 requires municipalities like Brookline to create a zoning district that allows multi-family development without special permits (see https://brooklinema.gov/2044). Because of the Harvard Street study’s foundational work, staff recognized an opportunity to both remedy Harvard Street zoning and comply with the MBTACA using sound planning principles.
Senior Planner Maria Morelli is also hosting Zoom Office Hours: Mondays noon to 5 pm and Tuesdays 8:30 am to 1 pm at through the month of March at https://brooklinema.zoomgov.com/j/1615833155. Please drop by with any questions or contact her at 617-730-2670) and [email protected].
Register for meeting
https://brooklinema.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJIsceyhrjwjE4zUtuPA4TSV3nl3YivTRLo
Or join by phone. Dial by your location