Overlay District Aims To Encourage Affordable Housing
Falmouth Planning Board’s first in-person public hearing this coming Tuesday, July 13, will focus on newly proposed amendments to the zoning bylaws.
Proposed is a Mixed Residential and Commercial Overlay District that would amend the town’s current zoning bylaws to allow for mixed-use developments in certain eligible locations throughout Falmouth.
The principal purpose of the proposed amendment is threefold: to enable the town to reach its goal of committing 10 percent of its housing to the Subsidized Housing Inventory; to incentivize developers and property owners to create diverse mixed-use housing options; and to enable the creation of livable, walkable neighborhoods in the town’s business districts through mixed-use developments—defined for these purposes as a building that contains both residential and non-residential units, including, but not limited to, commercial and institutional uses.
Currently, 85 percent of Falmouth’s housing inventory is single-family homes. Under current zoning bylaws, developers cannot build more than six units per acre; however, should the proposed amendments be approved, that number will increase to 20 units, allowing an increase in population density without overdeveloping the land. The increase in density would also allow for a larger monetary return on land, making it more profitable for developers.
Planning board chairwoman Charlotte Harris is hopeful that the multifamily bylaw will be favorably regarded by residents and developers alike. She explained that one of the biggest goals for this project is to create new housing opportunities while preserving the classic Cape Cod aesthetic. A design guide has been created to help achieve this goal.
“The only way developers can cover the cost of building on expensive land is to build an expensive house, and that kind of cooks the whole thing,” Ms. Harris said. “So this is an answer to that, we hope.”
The new bylaws would amend the Official Zoning Map by approving mixed-use in certain eligible locations—existing B-1, B-2 and Business Redevelopment zoning districts—that are determined by the virtue of their infrastructure, access to transportation, location and/or underutilized facilities. In order to expedite the approval process for potential upcoming developments, a subcommittee organized by the planning board has worked to outline a very specific plan detailing the uses allowed by right under these bylaws. As currently proposed, most of the new developments would be concentrated along Main Street through the Davis Straits area, with the intention of stimulating the local economy.
Ms. Harris hopes that by plainly laying out the details of where, why and how these multifamily mixed-use buildings will be developed, the uses afforded by right under the new bylaws will act to incentivize developers and streamline the administrative processes that go on behind the scenes.
“We get criticized for not having multifamily housing and for having a very slow process,” Ms. Harris said. “So we’re trying to make sure that developers will want to do this by making it by right, which streamlines the process.”
Developments built in these mixed-use approved districts will be asked to satisfy certain affordability requirements that have been outlined in the proposal. These requisites—for example, a mandate requiring 100 percent of rental dwelling units to be eligible for the state’s Subsidized Housing Inventory—are intended to promote economic vitality for the entire Town of Falmouth.
“One of the things that I like about the town is that we do have nature, we have the beaches, the pretty town, all of that; but we also have a full range of human beings. I think we could have greater racial diversity. We have economic diversity and we’re proud of it; so how do we keep that diversity and allow it to continue to grow? How do we have places for young people, for seniors who want to downsize, for a full range of people who would like to be here? … The town has been looking for a multifamily bylaw for a long time and this is it.”
The public hearing on the proposed bylaws will be held on Tuesday, July 13, at 6:30 PM in the Selectmen’s Meeting Room at Falmouth Town Hall.