The addition of 222,000 homes in Massachusetts by 2035 may cure the housing crisis in 10 years (“As state falls behind on housing, an ambitious goal,” Page A1, Feb. 7), but we need a change in mind-set along with zoning revisions to provide some semblance of relief now for workers on Cape Cod and across Massachusetts.
It is highly constructive that the Healey-Driscoll administration has quantified the problem, and the Affordable Homes Act that was signed into law last year is beginning to bear fruit. Traditional barriers, however, still stand in the way of the one thing we need the most: the production of more housing for residents living here today.
Government can change the definition of what can get built where, and it has begun to do that through, for example, the statewide by-right zoning of accessory dwelling units in neighborhoods zoned for single-family homes. Just as important is to adjust our thinking about housing to include today’s realities so that we can make decisions that not only expedite construction but also invest in our future.
For example, allowing houses closer together in our special region of the Commonwealth, on the Cape, may increase local traffic, but when planned for it is far better for the environment than making people drive longer distances and over congested bridges to get back and forth from work. In addition, multifamily housing may lead to more school-age residents, but with more people leaving our region and state than arriving, our schools should have the capacity.
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Good housing policy is good for all of us. Decision-makers and voters in every community should enable more housing of all types, especially for the “missing middle” type of medium-density housing that sustains neighborhoods. It is desperately needed now, and our future — locally, regionally, and nationally — depends on it.
Alisa Magnotta
CEO
Housing Assistance
Hyannis