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Councilor proposes housing-impact monitoring program to track development, infrastructure effects
Summary
Councilor Greeno Sawaya moved to ask the mayor to direct Planning & Development to create an in-house housing impact monitoring program with an annual public report on development, MBTA Communities Act compliance and impacts on schools, infrastructure, utilities and public safety; the motion, as amended, passed and was referred to the planning board.
Councilor Greeno Sawaya presented a motion July 13 asking the mayor to direct the Department of Planning and Development, in coordination with relevant city departments, to establish a housing impact monitoring program that produces an annual public report on housing development, MBTA Communities Act compliance and impacts on schools, infrastructure, utilities, public safety and emergency services.
"As the city continues to grow, we need reliable data to understand the impact of growth in our schools, our infrastructure, our public safety, and city services," Greeno Sawaya said, and described the motion as a request for a study and public report, not new regulation.
Councilors asked whether the proposed program would carry a cost. Greeno Sawaya said the proposal is "just a study right now, so there shouldn't be any cost" and that the work would be done in-house. The motion as amended shortens the original language and specifically refers the item to the planning board for review and recommendation.
The clerk recorded the motion as amended and, when put to the body, the chair called for a voice vote; the clerk announced the motion had been carried.
Next steps: the motion was referred to the planning board for review and recommendation; staff will be expected to produce the annual report if the program is approved and resourced.
