SuperSpartacus t1_jd7q9sy wrote on March 22, 2023 at 1:18 PM

Reply to comment by heavyiron382 in They’ve Been Warned: Attorney General Says Suburbs ‘Must Comply’ With Transit-Oriented Housing Law by psychothumbs

Imagine living in one of the wealthiest areas of the entire world and pretending like you can’t afford a few poor people in your neighborhood 😂😂😂

Also, referring to MetroWest as “rural” (?) but simultaneously claiming they don’t have land to build housing…? Okay NIMBY

heavyiron382 t1_jd7rud3 wrote on March 22, 2023 at 1:29 PM

Living in a northern worcester County town that is closer to NH than any major MA city, no Leominster, Fitchburg and Gardner are not major cities. We are far from the wealthiest area. We can't support building up and support your cities growth.

jbray90 t1_jd8sndm wrote on March 22, 2023 at 5:29 PM

Two pieces here: First: Gardner isn’t even included in the MBTA zoning law. Fitchburg and Leominster are because they have actual train stations.

Second: Multifamily units provide more taxes to any municipality per sq/ft than the equivalent single family unit so the idea that any town or city “can’t afford” to build up is literally wrong. They cannot afford to NOT build up. Every single town and city in Massachusetts was built on a dense, multi-level core (usually mixed use) with more rural housing built around that center. The idea that we need to double down on the last century of loose sprawl that equates to a financial Ponzi scheme, requiring ever increasing subsidies to match it when the infrastructure supporting it breaks down, is foolish at best and criminally negligent at worst.