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Inspectional-services report: 46 demolition applications in six months after multifamily zoning; 13 permits issued so far
Summary
City staff reported 46 demolition-permit applications in the six months following the Feb. passage of multifamily zoning; 13 permits had been issued at the time of the report and staff said many applications are partial demolitions or remain in process.
Cambridge inspectional-services staff told the City Council on Sept. 15 that 46 demolition permit applications arrived in the six months after the council adopted the multifamily-housing zoning amendment. Staff said 13 demolition permits had been issued to date; on the subset of applications that involved existing residential uses, 31 applications were submitted and seven permits had been issued.
Assistant commissioner Jeff Roberts and inspectional-services staff said the group of applications includes both full and partial demolitions: of the 46 total applications, staff reported 26 full-demolition applications and 20 partial-demolition applications.
Roberts told councilors there are many reasons an application can stall or change after submission, including financing delays, revised plans, misfiled applications and applicants withdrawing or redesigning projects. He said it was too early to draw definitive conclusions about long-term construction activity from the early application data and recommended repeating the report at a later interval.
Councilors asked staff to include additional detail in future updates: how many net housing units projects will produce, distinctions between owner-occupant renovations and speculative redevelopment, and whether projects are locally financed or purchased by outside investors.
Why it matters: Councilors and residents have raised concerns about potential demolition and redevelopment following the multifamily zoning change. Staff said applications have increased but cautioned that permit issuance and construction can lag applications for many reasons.
What's next: Staff agreed to provide a more detailed follow-up report at the one-year mark that will attempt to measure projected units, inclusionary-unit impacts and whether the applications translate into built housing.
