Arlington Town Meeting: Mixed-Use Ammendments, Parking Requirement Reductions Passed

Photo Credit: Joe Lipovich (Patch Staff)

ARLINGTON, MA—The first of the large set of zoning articles passed through Town Meeting during its opening session Monday night.

Articles 6 and 7, which the Arlington Redevelopment Board regarded as being designed to "unlock the development potential of business zoned land" in its report to Town Meeting, both passed through Town Meeting Monday. Article 6 passed by a vote of 187-35 and Article 7 passed by a vote of 180-34, according to Town Clerk Stephanie Lucarelli.

"Under the current zoning bylaw, developing mixed-use is very difficult to do," Jennifer Raitt, Arlington's Director of Planning and Community Development told Patch."The requirements were somewhat in conflict with one another."

Article 6 expands the definitions and eases the requirements to allow mixed-use zoning by special permit, particularly focused on Massachusetts Ave. and Broadway. According to the Redevelopment Board's report, the article will encourage development and growth along these commercial corridors.

The Redevelopment Board unanimously recommended Article 6.

Article 7 allows for reductions the parking requirements for commercial and multi-family residential properties when accompanied by an accepted plan to manage transportation demand.

The unanimous recommendation from the Redevelopment board came after a town-commissioned Residential Parking Analysis that determined that one parking space per unit was sufficient in commercial areas.

Raitt says that these articles will have a positive impact on the community.

"As soon as we issued the warrant, there was positive commentary on the proposal," Raitt said."People want to revitalize Arlington Center, they want to revitalize the heights. This will only make things better. It will have a positive impact on the commercial tax base and address some of Arlington's housing issues."

Check back with Patch for reactions to these decisions.