City Council Updates #21: Central Sq & MFH Zoning, Affordable Housing, Elder Services, National League of Cities Conference & Around Town

April 1, 2026

Dear Fellow Cantabrigians,

The last few weeks have been significant. In addition to resuming discussions about Central Square upzoning and the impacts of the Multifamily Housing (MFH) Ordinance, the Council passed zoning to align City and State laws on as of right zoning for religious and educational purposes, having realized the MFH Ordinance removed our exemption from the Dover amendment. I will work to reinstate some institutional regulations at an upcoming Economic Development & University Relations meeting. My policy order supporting Federal design funding for a riverwalk at Science Park also passed. (See rendering below.) Link: https://mass.streetsblog.org/2025/08/15/massdot-starts-planning-new-car-free-crossing-of-the-charles-river-next-to-museum-of-science

Discussion of Central Square Upzoning Resumes

I have always believed that Central Square is an excellent place to encourage development. Historically, Central Square has been Cambridge’s downtown and it is centrally located, a MBTA transportation hub, on a major arterial way and 100’-wide. While I worry about tall buildings casting shadows, I believe that greater density at Central is much more appropriate than in our neighborhoods, on Cambridge St. (65’ wide), and randomly on North Mass. Ave.—places recently upzoned.

I continue to advocate for the City to do a housing needs study to assess how much growth to incentivize and for whom. In the meantime, I will push for thoughtful development at Central that will preserve it as a diverse, funky, artistic place. It is our “cultural district.” As we encourage public/private partnerships on City owned lots there, we must be sensitive to displacement of both local residents and retail and create shared spaces to gather.

How Best to Amend the MFH Ordinance?

Last week kicked off the first of (at least) 3 MFH discussion meetings. The City’s 2025 Annual Housing Report suggests that little is happening in the neighborhoods and encourages a “wait and see” approach. It notes that it took the Affordable Housing Overlay (AHO) 5 years to yield results. I agree that we are now building a lot of wonderful affordable housing but disagree that the MFH has had little impact. I’ve crowdsourced a list showing over 80 MFH-inspired projects currently in the works. Properties have sold to developers with the intent to primarily build luxury units. See: https://bit.ly/4m84tPW . Larger projects are on hold, as developers await the Council’s decision to lower the required percentage of affordable housing required.

The recent Boston Foundation study of the MBTA Communities Act revealed that most development is happening on large underutilized lots—parking lots and on 1-2 story industrial and shopping mall sites. This is where we should be focusing our attention—building on our main corridors, close to public transport, and in the “transition zones” identified by Envision Cambridge. Link: https://www.tbf.org/news-and-insights/press-releases/2026/january/mbta-communities-report-pr-202601

It makes no sense to inflict so much pain on neighborhoods when development is not yielding affordable units. We must reassess our zoning incentives to promote larger projects on underutilized lots and corridors and to build worker housing with public/private partnerships on City-owned lots.

See the City’s 2025 Annual Housing Review and video of the March 25 Neighborhood & Long-Term Planning & Housing Committees meeting here: https://cambridgema.primegov.com/public/portal. The second meeting, on Tuesday, April 7 at 3pm, will include observations of realtor Ed Abrams, Developer Jason Corb, Harvard GSD urban planners Tim Love and Magda Maaoui, and GSD landscape architect Gary Hilderbrand. There will be no public comment at this meeting to ensure time for Council discussion. The goal of these sessions is to determine how to amend the MFH Ordinance to better achieve its intended goals. To stream the meeting, go here. https://cambridgema.primegov.com/public/portal.

Other Significant Meetings this Monday, April 6

@11am: The Ordinance Committee will hold a hearing regarding zoning recommendations to strengthen active use requirements on Cambridge Street and Mass Ave.

@ 3pm: the Council will have a Roundtable/Working Meeting to discuss the best future uses of City-owned properties and associated redevelopment processes. Join here. https://cambridgema.primegov.com/public/portal

Affordable Housing Trust 5-Year Report

The AHT has had many extraordinary accomplishments in the last five years. It

helped to purchase 14 properties
created or preserved 900 units
has 1000 units currently in development and
contributed an average of $250k per unit.

Just A Start just opened the first AHO project at 52 New Street with 106 rental units, many of them for families. Realize that Cambridge is now so unaffordable that a family of 4 can make between $132,300-$193,080 (80-120% of the Area Median Income) and qualify to live in affordable housing, so this “affordable housing” houses residents of varied economic means.

Future AHO plans include a May public meeting about the development of Central Square’s long-vacant Vail Court. The Trust also just committed another $13m to their HomeBridge Homebuyers Program, which assists qualifying households to purchase homes. These units will stay in the Cambridge’s deed-restricted housing inventory for perpetuity. Link: https://www.cambridgema.gov/cdd/housing/forhomebuyers/homebridge

Somerville-Cambridge Elder Services Legislative Breakfast

Elder service leaders shared that 32% of older Cambridge adults are rent burdened (paying more than 35% of their income on rent) and that 39% of our seniors live alone. Federal cuts to Medicaid and SNAP will heavily impact home care and nutrition programs, making it harder to age in place. This is foolish since it costs about $8,000 annually to provide resident services at home vs. $93,000 for nursing home care.

2026 National League of Cities Conference

I learned so many things at the NLC meeting in DC, where the mantra was “Local Governments Deliver.” I attended because I’m on the national Transportation and Infrastructure Services Committee, where we learned about the BASICS Act (H.R. 7437) which will streamline delivery of funding to local infrastructure owners to support regional priority transportation projects, road safety progress and local bridge improvements. (Other hot topics: rail safety and autonomous vehicles.) On Capitol Hill with the Mass. Municipal Assoc. staff, I had an opportunity to lobby for transportation, housing and infrastructure funding.

My big takeaway was that we are very fortunate that Cambridge has invested for decades in our Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) system. Many cities and towns don’t have the money to do this or to replace lead pipes, remove PFAS and manage their dwindling aquifers. Big challenges lie ahead. All are dramatically impacted by the chaos and uncertainty imposed by the Trump administration.

Around Town

I finally got to tour Harvard’s 100-acre Beacon Park Yard, just across the river, the site of the I-90 Allston Multimodal Project. Good news: Gov. Healey remains committed to advancing this “once in a generation opportunity,” despite the Feds withdrawing their $327m Connecting Communities grant. This is an opportunity to rebuild I-90, reconnect Allston with the river, and build a whole new mixed-use neighborhood, including transit at West Station (connecting to Kendall Sq.) and new river parklands.

I attended community meetings about 95 Cushing St. in Strawberry Hill, a 4-story, 6-unit development opposed by over 150 neighbors, and 84-86 Ellery St., a 6-story building, which has improved dramatically from input by the Architects Committee of the Mid-Cambridge Neighborhood Conservation District.

I also attended a Planning Board meeting where Just a Start shared plans for their 6 story, 20-unit 240 Broadway project, which was panned by Planning Board members, and a Committee on Public Planting meeting where landscape architects Reed Hilderbrand shared their draft 5-Year Update of the Urban Forest Plan.

At a Harvard Joint Center on Housing lecture focused on the rental market, I learned how Denver, CO has streamlined permitting. A housing project that once took 3 years to permit now takes 180 days. Amazing!

Other highlights:

Working with constituents to improve dangerous intersections, find meeting locations and to access information about MFH projects impacting their neighborhoods.
Celebrating the opening of the Eastern Edge Food Hall at Kendall Square.
Attending BC Law’s Forum on Land, Home and Power and learning about the Heirs’ Property Project.
Attending On the Rise’s Empty Bowl fundraiser and the Charles River Watershed Association’s 60th annual meeting, which honored the MWRA’s Fred Laskey.
Hearing tunes of the Heather Mumford Project at Cafe Zing at Porter Square.

We are lucky to live in Cambridge!

Please keep me apprised of your concerns and insights!

Cathie
City Councillor