Cambridge committee votes to lower multifamily housing base height to four stories

CAMBRIDGE — December 19, 2024 — Cambridge committee cuts proposed multifamily base zoning height from six stories to four, adding affordability incentives. The Ordinance Committee voted unanimously December 19 to recommend that the full City Council direct the City Manager and Community Development Department to redraft two pending multifamily zoning petitions to reduce the as-of-right height limit from six stories to four stories — roughly 75 feet down to 45 feet — while establishing a two-story density bonus allowing up to six stories for inclusionary developments. The committee also voted 7-2 to require a minimum lot size of 5,000 square feet for any building taller than four stories, a provision CDD staff confirmed would exclude roughly 70 percent of residential lots from five- and six-story development. A proposal by co-chair Councilor Paul Toner to lower the special permit threshold to 50,000 square feet failed 2-7, with members citing litigation risk to affordable housing developers. The committee voted 9-0 to clarify that the Affordable Housing Overlay would cap at nine stories in residential neighborhoods under the new base zoning — not 13 as the original proposal would have triggered — and amended a proposed three-year ordinance review to a five-year cycle with annual updates, mirroring the AHO reporting structure. The amended package goes to the full City Council for a vote, with a public comment meeting set for January 8, 2025.