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Needham working group delays final attic/FAR rule, members ask for more technical review
Summary
Members debated how to count attic or third-floor space toward FAR — options ranged from a 5-foot count rule to higher ceiling thresholds or Newton-style multi-criteria tests — and agreed to research builder input and meet again before finalizing the definition.
Members of the Town of Needham zoning working group spent a large portion of their meeting debating how attic or third-floor space should be counted toward Gross Floor Area (FAR), and agreed to defer a final decision pending additional research and builder consultation.
The group discussed multiple approaches: a simple rule counting all space above a 5-foot clearance (similar to some town models), a minimum-ceiling threshold such as 6'6" or 6'8", a Newton-style four-criteria test that requires several conditions to…
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