Worcester may pass a new type of zoning to mandate affordable housing units in new developments.
At a City Council meeting on Tuesday, councilors all spoke favorably about a report on inclusionary zoning from its Executive Office of Economic Development.
Inclusionary zoning is a tool used by 140 communities in Massachusetts to encourage affordable housing units in new housing developments.
Over the past several years, Worcester’s affordable housing stock has shrunk, according to the City Council report from Chief Development Officer Peter Dunn. The latest data on subsidized housing shows about 13.5% of Worcester’s housing is affordable, but that number is from the end of 2020 and has likely decreased, Dunn wrote in his report.
Inclusionary zoning in Worcester, as recommended by Dunn, would require affordable housing units in all new multifamily developments with 12 or more units. Those projects would be required to set aside 15% of the square footage to units for residents making 80% of the area median income or 10% for those making 60% AMI, or a combination.
Developers proposing projects in Worcester would have the option to pay a fee instead of meeting the affordable zoning requirements, per Dunn’s recommendation.
“This would provide some flexibility as we understand how the market will respond to the new policy and also provide a potential revenue stream for ongoing capitalization of the new Affordable Housing Trust Fund,” Dunn wrote.
The Affordable Housing Trust Fund is seeded by monies from the American Rescue Plan Act, but does not have an ongoing stream of revenue, Councilor Khrystian King pointed out at Tuesday’s meeting. King emphasized the need for a funding mechanism to keep the trust fund financed after the ARPA money is spent.
The City is considering including incentives for developers, such as increased flexibility on Worcester’s off-street parking requirements.
Along with increasing Worcester’s affordable housing stock, the new ordinance would help mitigate class and racial segregation, increasing the mix of income levels in neighborhoods, said Councilor Sarai Rivera.
City Council sent the zoning ordinance report to the economic development committee for further review and research on Dunn’s recommendations.
