Topics:
City and Regional Planning,
Housing,
Land Use and Zoning,
Technology and Tools
Locations:
California,
Maine,
Massachusetts,
U.S. and Canada,
U.S. Northeast,
Utah
Data Type:
StoryMap
What Does 15 Units Per Acre Look Like?
A StoryMap Exploring Street-Level Density
Massachusetts is requiring many communities to update their zoning codes to allow more multifamily housing near transit stations, at a minimum of 15 homes per acre. Most localities are complying, but the zoning legislation — known as the MBTA Communities law — has also prompted some pushback.
Some of that resistance no doubt arises from a wariness of change — and “homes per acre” is an unfamiliar, abstract concept for many people. This StoryMap explores what the metric looks like in the real world, with photographs of street scenes around Greater Boston where the gross neighborhood density is currently about 15 homes per acre or more.