Needham committee examines why new houses on small lots are growing and how to limit bulk

The Needham Large House Review Study Committee on Zoom examined a working-group study of homes built on nonconforming lots and discussed possible zoning changes to limit building bulk on smaller parcels.

Co‑chair Artie Crocker opened the meeting and turned the presentation over to committee member Oscar Mertz, who said the working group picked 11 houses on lots under 10,000 square feet to test how current rules affect massing and interior program. "We selected lots under 10,000, a range of sizes of lots. We picked 11," Mertz said. He told the committee the team verified plan square footage, counted bedrooms and compared several ways of calculating FAR.

The presentation and ensuing discussion focused on three findings: recent homes on small lots tend to be designed to the FAR limit, garages now are typically built inside the main mass rather than as detached structures, and reliance on a single FAR percentage produces a big disparity in allowable house size across lot sizes. "It looks like the FAR is the only criteria that these houses are being designed to, so they are all hovering just under the 38% FAR regardless of the…