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Southborough Affordable Housing Trust coalesces around 10–12.5% goal for proposed 55+ inclusionary bylaw
Summary
Trust members discussed a proposed 55+ inclusionary zoning bylaw, weighing 10% vs. 12.5% affordable-unit requirements, AMI targeting (80% vs. a range up to 120%), buyout rules, and density caps; members agreed to coordinate closely with the planning board and pursue follow-up at upcoming meetings.
The Town of Southborough Affordable Housing Trust spent the bulk of its meeting on a draft 55-plus inclusionary zoning bylaw, debating how large a share of new senior housing should be set aside as affordable and how to handle buyouts and density rules.
Speaker 2, who summarized the town’s current inclusionary rules and neighboring town comparisons, said Westborough recently adopted a 15% requirement for new developments of 10 or more units, with units affordable at up to 80% of area median income (AMI) and an additional 5% at up to 120% AMI. "So they did an economic feasibility analysis to come to those numbers," Speaker 2 said, adding that the Westborough approach could provide useful data for Southborough.
Members debated whether the new 55-plus bylaw should require 10% affordable units — the floor in state MBTA Communities guidance — or align with other Southborough bylaws at 12.5%. "I definitely think at least 10%…
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