Cambridge Council Forwards Multifamily Housing Zoning Revisions 8-1 on Dec. 23

CAMBRIDGE -- December 23, 2024, Cambridge City Council votes 8-1 to advance multifamily housing zoning revisions two days before Christmas. The council held a packed December 23 regular meeting in which all nine members voted to suspend rules and admit a late policy order sponsored by Vice Mayor Marc McGovern, Councillor Burhan Azeem, Councillor Sumbul Siddiqui, and Councillor Paul Toner directing the Community Development Department to draft amendments to two pending multifamily housing zoning petitions, with a January 16, 2025 reporting deadline. Key changes include reducing the base as-of-right building height from six stories to four stories, establishing a two-story density bonus for inclusionary developments, restoring five-foot side and rear setbacks, and requiring a minimum 5,000-square-foot lot for buildings taller than four stories. Councillor Quinton Zondervan, the lone no vote, argued the amendments failed to address residents' core demand that height be concentrated along transit corridors as recommended by the Envision Cambridge plan, and noted that 76 projects already in progress are expected to produce 5,301 units including 987 affordable ones. The council also unanimously approved a five-year school bus transportation contract that includes pricing for a 40-percent battery-electric fleet and a year-one electrification assessment, and ordained three parking-related municipal ordinances.