Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Council committee recommends Somerville zoning map change for Summer Nova site; widespread concern about traffic and construction mitigation
Summary
The Land Use Committee voted to recommend approval of a zoning map amendment that would rezone several parcels on the Summer Nova campus from Mid‑Rise 4 to Mid‑Rise 6, following developer presentations comparing base R&D zoning and an Arts and Innovation overlay.
The Somerville City Council Land Use Committee recommended approval on a zoning map amendment for parcels at 11 Horace Street, 5–7, 9–13 and 15 Ward Street, and 15 and 21 South Street that would change the parcels’ zoning from Mid‑Rise 4 to Mid‑Rise 6 (agenda item 24‑1584). Councilor Ewen Kampen moved to recommend approval and the committee voted by roll call: Councilor Davis, Councilor Saeed, Councilor Wilson, Councilor Ewen Kampen and Councilor McLaughlin all voted yes; the motion was recorded “as recommended to be approved.”
Developers and city staff used a slide deck of massing visualizations to compare the current research‑and‑development (R&D) base zoning with the proposed Arts and Innovation (AI) overlay. Russ Preston, presenting for the applicant, walked committee members through multiple camera views showing “worst‑case”…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
