BOSTON – Arguing the need for a "revolution in housing production" to keep pace with demand, a report released Wednesday by a Senate committee recommends 19 proposals taking aim at everything from foreclosures to gentrification, homelessness, preservation, production, public housing, support services and zoning.
Along with support for housing-related legislation and expansion of existing programs, the report calls for several new initiatives, including plans to develop "millennial villages" to free up housing stock for working families and to provide state assistance to urban areas and former industrial communities that have experienced blight.
BOSTON – The Boston Redevelopment Authority's bid to retain for 10 more years the power to reshape entire neighborhoods took center stage at a four-hour City Council hearing Thursday. But the council stopped short of delivering the favorable vote sought be the agency to extend the life of its urban renewal tool set.
While four of the 13 councilors rejected a decade-long extension, two of the four, including President Michelle Wu, suggested a much shorter timeframe, saying that the agency could use it to recast the program, according to the Boston Globe. It said two councilors supported giving the agency another 10 years to wield the power of designating blighted areas, using eminent domain for land-taking, and offering tax breaks to spur development.
