Cambridge Committee Reviews Central Square Zoning Plan, Lot Development Next Steps

CAMBRIDGE -- May 21, 2024, Cambridge's Neighborhood and Long-Term Planning Committee heard a staff briefing Tuesday on plans to rezone Central Square and advance development on four city-owned parcels, including the former Starlight Square lot at 96 Bishop Allen Drive. Melissa Peters, Director of Community Planning at the Community Development Department, outlined a dual-track process pairing a rezoning effort with a public-private partnership model for lots 4 and 5 on Bishop Allen Drive, with a request for information to potential development partners expected within one to two months. Community Engagement Manager Marlies Westouda described a multi-pronged outreach plan including a postcard mailer to 12,000 households, an online mapping tool, and a team of seven outreach workers covering six linguistic communities. Public commenter and property owner Patrick Barrett called the Community Development Department chronically unready, predicting the zoning petition would slip into 2025 and warned it would land "again" during a city council election cycle. Neighbor Dan Totten, of 54 Bishop Allen Drive, called any market-rate housing on city-owned land "insulting and unacceptable" and urged application of the Affordable Housing Overlay to the Starlight parcel.