Tension over the MBTA Communities Law was on display Wednesday night at a CommonWealth Beacon panel in Quincy as a state legislator who voted for the law – and feels it did not go far enough – clashed with a city council president who expressed reservations with the top-down nature of the state telling cities and towns what to do.
Housing
Posted inCourts
Full SJC to hear Milton rezoning case
Justice Serge Georges Jr. said the case against Milton, which centers around how to enforce the MBTA Communities Act, “raises novel questions of law which are of public importance and which are time sensitive and likely to recur.”
Posted inCourts
On zoning law, Campbell seeks legal shot across the bow
Campbell wants to skip a trial in Superior Court and go straight to the SJC in May in an effort to establish clearly that Milton and other communities in the state are subject to the law and her office has the authority to enforce compliance.
Posted inHousing
A divided Milton heads into court
Milton seems unprepared, partly because of the fast-moving pace of legal action and mostly because town officials are as divided as the town they represent.
Posted inOpinion
Both sides overselling MBTA Communities Act
Its real impact will be far less than the rhetoric from both sides of the debate. Proponents tout it as a transformative effort to tackle racial segregation and build affordable housing in our region’s most exclusionary suburbs. There is truth in these claims. But now that we’re shifting to implementation, I worry that overstating the law’s magnitude has contributed to the blowback.
Posted inHousing
Emergency shelter system morphing into something new
Gov. Maura Healey placed a cap on shelter families. Now the House is proposing time limits on stays in the shelter system.
Posted inHousing
Milton Select Board divided on next steps
Milton officials now find themselves in the awkward position of trying to comply with the law in an angry community that soundly rejected their earlier effort at compliance.
Posted inOpinion
Public flogging of Milton is unnecessary
Balance is struck when we pass laws that are punitive (or expensive) towards undesirable behavior. From laws restricting pollution, to taxes on tobacco, we guide society in the direction we desire. Society becomes off kilter when the restrictions become too onerous and begin to impede the rights we possess.
Posted inTransportation
Here is why state feels Milton is a rapid transit community
The Guidelines do not – and cannot – take into consideration the quality of the service or the type of equipment used on any given line.
Posted inOpinion
Is ‘paper compliance’ with the MBTA Communities law good enough?
It doesn’t add any new homes for young adults or new families, or add diversity. It doesn’t create new opportunities for downsizing seniors. It doesn’t add the homes our local employers need to attract and retain workers. But it passes the compliance test.