Planning & Development Department's "Friday Report"

Visit our website at https://www.newtonma.gov/government/planning

Meetings at a Glance

Monday, March 29:

No Department meetings

Tuesday, March 30:

No Department meetings

Wednesday, March 31:

No Department meetings

Thursday, April 1:

Conservation Commission, 7:00 p.m. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83200507162 or +16465588656,,83200507162#

Meetings Next Week

Conservation Commission: On Thursday, April 1, at 7:00 p.m. the Commission will meet via Zoom. To join this meeting, click https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83200507162 or dial +16465588656,,83200507162#. The following matters will be discussed: Wetland decisions regarding: a presentation by Newton Parks, Recreation and Culture regarding the proposed renovation of the Marty Sender Trail; a continuation request to 4/22/21 for the Notice of Intent hearing for reconstruction of a sunroom and detached garage and construction of a new screened porch/deck at 10 Cumberland Road; a continued Notice of Intent for renovation of an existing building, demo and construction of a new building, and overall site cleanup at 28-30 Riverdale Avenue; a Notice of Intent for additions onto a single family home at 192 Concord Street; an Amended Order of Conditions request for approved work at 33 Staniford Street; ratification of an Enforcement Order against 73 Beaconwood Road. Conservation decisions: a discussion with current beekeepers on conservation land about the policy regarding beekeeping on Conservation Areas adopted on 3/11/21; a continued discussion about trail head signs. Administrative decisions: approval of the 3/11/21 minutes. Updates will be given on wetland matters, conservation areas, administrative matters, and issues around town. Detail regarding Zoom access and the detailed agenda can be found HERE. Contact Jennifer Steel at 617.796.1134 or jsteel@newtonma.gov

Project & Program Updates

Housing Assistance & Eviction Diversion: Are you, or someone you know, having difficulty paying rent or facing eviction? Click on newtonma.gov/HousingHelp to explore resources for housing assistance and eviction diversion in Newton and Massachusetts. The city's resources are available in Spanish, Chinese, Arabic, Russian and Portuguese. For rental and mortgage assistance through the City of Newton’s Emergency Housing Relief Program, contact Metro West at robyn@metrowestcd.org (preferred method) or 617-923-3505 x5 to begin the application process. You can also contact the City of Newton’s Social Services at 617-796-1420 to work with city staff on which resources may be the best fit for you.
Fair Housing Month: For the month of April, the WestMetro HOME Consortium (WMHC) invites you to celebrate Fair Housing Month to increase efforts to end housing discrimination and raise awareness of fair housing rights. On April 11 and 29, WMHC will be hosting the WMHC Fair Housing Workshop led by Judi Barrett of Barrett Planning LLC. The workshop will focus on land use policies and the larger role local governments can play in leading the way towards fair housing. To learn more about this workshop and other events held by partnering agencies, click HERE. In addition, WMHC has compiled a resource list to increase education and outreach about fair housing. To view the resource list, click HERE. Contact Amanda Berman, Director of Housing and Community Development at aberman@newtonma.gov
New Affordable Housing Opportunities: Stay up-to-date on new affordable housing opportunities in Newton as they become available for rent or purchase. Click HERE to input your name and email address to receive the Planning Department’s Email Updates regarding available affordable housing units throughout the City. Contact Malcolm Lucas at 617.796.1149 or mlucas@newtonma.gov.
Houghton Village: Newton Community Development Foundation is accepting applications for the WAITING LIST. Houghton Village is a 50-unit townhouse community located at 27-80 Hamlet Street in Newton Centre for its 2, 3 and 4-Bedrooms for the Workforce Housing Program (10 Units). Spacious apartments featuring washer/dryer hookup in unit, semi-private rear patio and all appliances included. Walking distance to MBTA, shopping and dining in Chestnut Hill and Newton Centre. Households must be income eligible for the program which is financed under the guidelines of MassHousing. Rents are established at below market rates and do not charge based on applicant’s income. Interested applicants should email houghtonvillage@ncdfinc.org or call (617) 244-5196 to obtain a Waitlist Application. For more information, please click here
845 Washington Street (TRIO): TCC is accepting applications for 845 Washington Street, Newton, MA. Interested applicants should email lrubin@tccrealestate or call (617)313-7845 to obtain a Waitlist Application. As applicants reach the top of the Waiting Lists, they will be contacted by the Leasing Office to move forward in filling out a Lease Application. This units will be leased to income eligible applicants at an affordable price to households with incomes at 100 and 120% of the Area Median Income. For more information, please click here
Myrtle Village: Newton Community Development Foundation is accepting applications for the WAITING LIST. Myrtle Village is located in West Newton, MA. Interested applicants should email myrtlevillage@ncdfinc.org or call (617) 244-2160 to obtain a Waitlist Application. As applicants reach the top of the Waiting Lists, they will be contacted by the Leasing Office to move forward in filling out a Lease Application. This units will be leased to income eligible applicants at an affordable price to households with incomes at 50, 80 and 85% of the Area Median Income. For more information, please click here
429 Cherry Street: Metro West CD is accepting applications for 429 Cherry Street. This property consists of 3 Deed-Restricted 2-Bedroom condominiums that are available at The Eliot, a new 14-unit condominium development in Newton, MA. 2 Affordable units are at 80% Area Median Income) priced at $301,000 and there is 1 Middle Income unit (120% Area Median Income) priced at $461,000. Lottery deadline is April 10, 2021 5:00 PM. CLICK HERE to download the application. Completed applications should be emailed to Stefanie , Metro West CD Staff, at stefanie@metrowestcd.org or mailed to Metro West CD, 79-B Chapel Street, Newton, MA 02458
Zoning Redesign: We are constantly working on making the Zoning Redesign website clearer and more user friendly. Please check out the updates we have made to the Zoning Redesign landing site and let us know what you think! Staff are continuing to build out the background research for the next phase focused on village centers and transit nodes and plan to present next at ZAP at the April 26 meeting. Contact the Zoning Redesign team at zoningredesign@newtonma.gov
FY22 Annual Action Plan: The City of Newton and WestMetro HOME Consortium have prepared the FY22 Annual Action Plan, which describes the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME), and Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) funded projects that will be undertaken over the course of the program year. The City of Newton and WestMetro HOME Consortium will be holding a public hearing on the FY22 Annual Action Plan to solicit feedback and ensure grant funds are effectively spent to assist low- and moderate-income residents. The public hearing will be held Monday, April 5 at 7:00 P.M. at the Planning and Development Board meeting. A draft of the FY22 Annual Action Plan can be found HERE. Contact Amanda Berman at aberman@newtonma.gov
Community Preservation Committee:On March 15, the City Council voted to approve the CPC’s recommendation for $4.2 million in community housing funds to 2Life Communities to preserve and rehabilitate the Coleman House Senior Affordable Housing Development. The CPC’s next meeting is scheduled for April 13 and the deadline for new applications is Friday, March 26 at 4:00 P.M. Contact Lara Kritzer at lkritzer@newtonma.gov
Small Business Recovery Grant Program: The Planning Department launched a second round of the Newton COVID-19 Small Business Recovery Grant Program in January. Applications were due by February 8. The $300,000 Program will aid in the stabilization of existing small brick and mortar businesses within the City that have had significant disruption due to the impact of COVID-19. The Program received over 70 applications, which are currently being evaluated by staff from the Planning and Community Development Department as well as volunteers from the Economic Development Commission. Award decisions will be announced in March. For more information please visit www.newtonma.gov/SBR
WestMetro HOME Consortium HM20 & HM21 Former CHDO Set-Aside Funds RFP: The WestMetro HOME Consortium through the City of Newton has released an RFP to award $292,365.51 in HM20 and HM21 Former CHDO Set-Aside funding. Traditionally, these funds are set-aside for projects sponsored by certified Community Housing Development Organizations (CHDOs). However, through the CARES Act, the Consortium has been granted a waiver by the Department of Housing & Urban Development to allocate these funds to non-CHDO sponsored projects. Interested applicants can access the application HERE. The deadline for proposals is 5:00 p.m. on March 26, 2021. Contact Eamon Bencivengo, Housing Development Planner, with any questions at ebencivengo@newtonma.gov
Emergency Housing Relief Program: Funds are still available and applications are still being accepted for rental and mortgage assistance for income-eligible households who have experienced a reduced income due to COVID-19 and earn 80% or less of the Area Median Income (AMI) at the time of application. (For example, a family of four at the 80% AMI level has an annual income of $96,250.) The maximum timeframe that an eligible household can receive assistance from the program has been extended from eight to twelve months. Applications will be accepted through June 30, 2021. The funding assistance covers 70% of an eligible household’s monthly rent or mortgage for up to three months, with possible three-month extensions for qualifying households. The assistance has a monthly cap of $2,500 per household. Households currently receiving housing assistance (e.g. Public Housing tenants, RAFT, Section 8, MRVP or other locally administered support) are eligible for this program. Only Newton homeowners who reside in deed-restricted affordable properties are eligible to apply for mortgage assistance. The $3,700,000 program uses Newton Community Preservation Act (CPA) and federal Community Development Block Grant Coronavirus (CDBG-CV) funds. Metro West Collaborative Development is administering the program on behalf of the City. Contact Metro West at robyn@metrowestcd.org (preferred method) or 617-923-3505 x5 to begin the application process. The details of this program, including program guidelines, can also be found HERE
Baker-Polito Administration’s COVID-19 Eviction Diversion Initiative: In response to the expiration of the state’s eviction and foreclosure moratorium on October 17th, the Baker-Polito Administration announced the COVID-19 Eviction Diversion Initiative, a comprehensive set of expanded resources for renters, homeowners, and landlords facing eviction, foreclosure, loss of utilities and other housing emergencies due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of this $171 million initiative is to keep tenants safely in their homes and to support the ongoing expenses of landlords. Services provided by the initiative include rental and mortgage assistance, legal aid, housing counseling, and post-eviction rapid rehousing through new and expanded programs. If you are struggling to make rent or mortgage payments, call 2-1-1 to speak with trained staff or visit www.mass.gov/CovidHousingHelp for additional questions and more information.
FY21-25 Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice: The full draft report is available on the City’s website HERE. On Monday, December 7, 2020, the Planning & Development Board held a public hearing on this item to solicit feedback on the full draft report and to ensure that the City and Consortium are taking effective steps to affirmatively further fair housing. The City of Newton and the WestMetro HOME Consortium (13 contiguous communities, of which Newton is the lead) are required by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to prepare an Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice (AI). The AI is a five-year plan that analyzes barriers in access to housing opportunities throughout the Consortium and identifies priorities and goals to address these issues. To develop the FY21-25 AI, the City of Newton and the Consortium contracted with consultants, Barrett Planning Group and JM Goldson LLC. To download the full draft report, please visit: https://www.newtonma.gov/home/showpublisheddocument?id=47557
West Newton Armory (1135 Washington Street): The City of Newton has been awarded a $200,000 grant from the Massachusetts Department of Housing & Community Development’s Housing Choice Capital Grant Program to contract with a consultant team to conduct a pre-development feasibility analysis of the West Newton Armory’s suitability as a site for affordable housing. After releasing an RFP and creating an evaluation committee to review proposals, the City has selected Affirmative Investments to undertake this analysis. Affirmative Investments is a Boston-based, consulting firm with a successful track-record in helping developers, non-profits, and local governments expand housing opportunities and deliver critical services in low-income communities. The grant award and Affirmative Investments have been of substantial help to the City’s Joint Advisory Planning Group (JAPG) in identifying options for the Armory’s future use. On November 13, 2020, after 11 months of discussion, research, and analysis, the JAPG recommended that the City seek to purchase the Armory from the Commonwealth for $1 to redevelop the building into 100% affordable housing. The City Council’s Real Property Reuse Committee held a public hearing on January 27, 2021 and voted unanimously to recommend to the full City Council that the Mayor be authorized to purchase the Armory for one dollar from the Commonwealth for redevelopment into 100% permanently affordable housing. On Monday, February 1, the full City Council voted in favor of this recommendation, authorizing the Mayor to purchase the Armory and redevelop the site as affordable housing. The Armory, built between 1910 – 1912, housed the Massachusetts State National Guard for over 100 years. The National Guard decommissioned the West Newton Armory, which is now under the management control to the Commonwealth’s Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM). Click here to read the JAPG Final Recommendation and Report . In addition, please click HERE to read the Affirmative Investment's Final Draft Report. Contact Eamon Bencivengo at 617.796.1145 or ebencivengo@newtonma.gov or click here for more information on the Armory
Sign Up for Mayor Fuller’s Email Updates: Looking for the latest news about happenings at City Hall and around Newton? Click the icon to the right or input your email address HERE to receive Mayor Ruthanne Fuller’s Email Updates. To see archived editions of the Mayor’s Email Updates, visit the City of Newton website at www.newtonma.gov.

Planning & Development Department | City of Newton, MA | 617.796.1120