Thread by @SomervilleYIMBY

#ZoningReform for #VilleMA hearing called to order! Let’s #legalize3deckers! #MApoli

Full house here tonight. Lots of folks signed up to speak. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #MApoli

Former alderman Maryann Heuston up first! Speaking about Beacon & Washington intersection: thinks NR is insufficient! Should be zoned for greater density. Amen! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Lots of folks from Zone Smart opposing the continuing of the 4 unrelated persons prohibition. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

White St neighbors supporting #ZoningReform! They like the upcoming of their street, and we do too! #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

here in support of #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Beacon St residents & neighbors here against the MR zoning for Beacon St, with worries of the loss of one-storey buildings & parking, asking for preservation of character.

Respectfully, we disagree.
#ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

And now we have a song from another Beacon St resident, opposing loss of character & the zoning reform. Lots of claps & whistles for the song though.

Lots of scaremongering of displacement. Again, we disagree.
#ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Next speaker spoke in favor of allowing tiny houses. We like ‘em! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Everett Ave residents speaking now. Speaking in favor of keeping the ability to redevelop 2-unit into 3-unit buildings. We agree! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Second speaker tonight bring in up the Demolition Review Ordinance. Changes to this ordinance make permitting & construction much harder. Check it out folks & speak up! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Cofounder of @AeronautBrewing here speaking in favor of the fabrication district addition in the #ZoningReform

We like it, too! And we like your beer 🍺

#VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A Beacon/Washington St resident pushing for his lot to go from NR to a higher density plot. Amen! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A speaker asks the zoning not be passed b/c it does not address SomerVision’s goal of adding 125 acres of green space. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A bike activist speaks positively in favor of the bike improvements, and mentions the great changes to the parking requirements near transit. We agree! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Ariel, one of members, speaking in favor of the zoning, but asking for more density, for allowing 3-unit homes. Speaks to preserving the human character, instead of the building character. Hooray to that! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Matt, one of our members, speaking in favor of recouping our transit investment by increasing density near transit. Amen! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Affordable housing worker speaking to adding protections for inclusionary zoning tenants if their building is converted to condos. A recent news item around here. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Another speaker in favor of upzoning, Katie Gradiwski! She wrote a thoughtful op/ed on allowing more density we think is great. She spoke in favor of spreading density increases evenly across the city. Hooray to that! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Another tiny house activist! Hooray for tiny houses 🏠#ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A speaker from @SCC_Somerville here, yeah! We love our local affordable housing developers. Spoke about IZ, the 100 Homes Program, and purpose-built affordable housing (i.e., 100% affordable) #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A speaker directly brings up real estate speculation. Spoke in favor of density bonuses for deed-restricted unit additions. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Our steering board member @Short_epics speaks! Advocates for the parking maximums & and upzoning NR districts. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Next is @3deckerlaura, speaking also in favor of reducing our parking minimums. Go Laura! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

And now our member Chris, speaking to how environmentally friendly density is. Making room for more neighbors means fewer cars & less impact on the Earth. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Next speaker questions why we’re preserving so much of the city instead of allowing more development to increase our housing supply & stem increases in costs. Hear hear, sir! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A handful of cannabis advocates have spoken already tonight, pushing back on the moratorium here. Zoning is complicated & touches a lot of things! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A resident speaks about rebuilding their two-unit home that burned down 1964, and has been stymied ever since due to lot size. We think you should be able to do that! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Lots of folks speaking in favor of keeping the ability to convert 2-unit buildings to 3-unit ones. Dig it! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A speaker suggests we adopt Tokyo-style zoning: additive zoning! Denser districts would allow anything permitted in less dense neighborhoods. Works for the Japanese very well. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

A resident of Brickbottom Artists speaking! An important set of our community. Speaking in favor of Brickbottom being a fabricator district & industrial. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Ben Echevarria speaks to inequities being codified by only upzoning areas traditionally populated by people of color. We’d love to see upzoning everywhere! #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Summer St resident points out that condos do allow people to put down roots here. The driver of these tweets is also one of those people, and agrees! We need all forms of housing. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

We end on a nasty note: a resident complaining that we’ve created our housing crisis. Deriding SomerVision, walking, biking, lauding driving & parking. Deriding the boards & getting ugly after exceeding their time. #ZoningReform #VilleMA #legalize3deckers #MApoli

Thanks to everyone who came out & gave comment. Lots of support for 3-unit homes, density, supporting our transit. Let’s see how the #ZoningReform proceeds!

Don’t forget you can still submit written comment, open until 5/25 @ 12pm, per the boards’ decision this evening.