Chapter 40B Land Area Minimum
Statutory Land Area Minimum
As Defined by M.G.L. c. 40B, S. 20
The Town of West Boylston has determined that the town has achieved a 1.5% land area minimum as defined by Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40B, Section 20. Chapter 40B provides for several circumstances when a town, through the Zoning Board of Appeals, can deny a comprehensive permit that is not consistent with local needs:
- a town is in compliance with its Affordable Housing Plan; or
- at least 10% of all housing units in the community are on the Subsidized Housing Inventory; or
- the proposed project would result in constructing SHI housing on more than .3% or land available for development or 10 acres (whichever is larger) in one calendar year; or
- at least 1.5% of the total land area available for residential, commercial or industrial use is currently classified as "SHI Eligible Land Area."
Given this circumstance, any developer proposing a Comprehensive Permit development in West Boylston, is strongly encouraged to work with the Affordable Housing Trust to ensure that the proposed development is appropriate for the town and is in accordance with our Affordable Housing Production Plan.
For the full analysis performed by our consultant, H & H Associates, LLP, please click here.
How did we reach 1.5% land area minimum?
First, we needed to calculate the "General Land Area Minimum", which acts as the denominator to the equation. This figure represents the total land area in town where residential, commercial or industrial use is allowed, minus any land that is owned by the town (excluding our Housing Authority), the Commonwealth, any state public agency or the United States; water; and flood plain, conservation and open space where residential, commercial or industrial use is prohibited.
Next, we needed to calculate the amount of land which is eligible for SHI housing. Following the guidelines from the Commonwealth, this includes land area that contains SHI units or is under a valid comprehensive permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals. If a development contains both market-rate and SHI units, the land area is prorated accordingly.
July 18, 2013 Article in The Banner: Can the town reject 40B projects outright?