NEEDHAM, Mass. — During a special election on Tuesday, the Town of Needham voted “No” to a ballot question that allows zoning for 3,350 multifamily units.
Preliminary results posted to the town clerk’s page show 6,866 residents voted “No,” and 4,882 voted “Yes.”
According to the town’s communications director, Needham will have to start over and adopt new zoning plans again. This means the town will continue to be out of compliance with the MBTA Communities Act and could miss out on state funding opportunities.
The MBTA Communities Act requires 177 cities and towns that are served by the public transit system to establish a zoning district for multifamily housing within 0.5 miles of a commuter rail station.
Currently, 116 communities are complying.
On Tuesday, “Yes” and “No” signs could be seen on the streets of Needham.
Several people braved the cold, windy weather to hold signs outside of town hall, including Cathy Mertz, a 32-year resident of Needham.
“People feel strongly, and it’s a very complex issue,” she explained.
The issue has become even more complicated in recent months because of results from a town hall meeting last October, where two zoning plans were voted on: (1) Base Compliance Plan and (2) Neighborhood Housing Plan.
0 of 3
According to the Town of Needham’s “Frequently Asked Questions” page, the Base Compliance Plan allows for 1,925 units to be built, while the Neighborhood Housing Plan permits more than 3,350 units. Since both plans passed, the 3,350-unit plan superseded the smaller plan. Under the MBTA Communities Act, the Town of Needham’s minimum unit capacity is 1,784.
However, that decision wasn’t final because residents garnered enough signatures over the next month to oppose the decision, and to subsequently hold the town-wide special election on January 14.
Judith McIntyre isn’t against the multifamily housing zoning altogether. She voted “No” because she wanted fewer than the 3,350 units and thought the Base Compliance Plan was more suitable to the town’s current infrastructure.
“I think it terms of, just say, traffic, you know, we have pretty small streets,” McIntyre explains.
She believes that the town should go over zoning plans again now that residents have a better idea of what’s going on.
However, there are people who believe more multifamily housing units will be more beneficial since there are very few apartment and condo options.
“We’ve been trying to encourage multifamily housing for decades in this town, and almost nothing has happened. This state law kind of gave us the impetus to try to do a little bit more,” says Bob Smart.
On Tuesday, the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities filed emergency regulations with the Secretary of the Commonwealth, which will give communities like Needham six months to come into compliance with the MBTA Communities Act.
Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
©2025 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/7QOJU3BNCJERBNKJC5LWTBYFLU.png)
