‘Radical and Irresponsible’: Residents Blast Zoning Upheaval at Planning Board Hearing

A Cambridge Planning Board hearing Tuesday became an eruption of frustration as more than 35 residents raised objections to a city proposal to eliminate single-family zoning city-wide.

The meeting began with Cambridge Development Department Zoning Director Jeff Roberts detailing the proposal’s projected impacts for more than an hour — assuring both residents and board members that the zoning would not constitute a radical upheaval of the status quo — as residents sat anxiously awaiting their turn in public comment.

But when it was the residents’ turn to speak, an overwhelming majority painted the change, which would allow developers to build six-story multifamily developments across the city, as a permanent and possibly destructive change to Cambridge’s built environment.

“The City Council members and the developers should not be making a decision on behalf of the citizens that will have such a massive impact on our community,” Elizabeth “Liz” Loya said.

The proposal — which has slowly progressed through the Council since March — reflects a longstanding desire from city officials to abolish single-family zoning, something they say has raised housing prices and contributed to the city’s housing shortage.

But the proposal has faced growing local opposition, with neighborhood leaders similarly pushing back against the zoning proposal a few weeks ago at a City Council hearing.

The change may face skepticism from the Planning Board, which is expected to give a nonbinding recommendation on the proposal next Tuesday and has historically been more wary than the Council of aggressive zoning reform.

The Planning Board also has skin in the game: if the upzoning is approved, developers will be able to construct larger, denser apartment buildings anywhere in the city without seeking approval from the body, which considers applications for developments that exceed zoning restrictions.

When its members reconvene next week, the testimony from Tuesday’s hearing will be fresh in their minds.

Helen Walker projected the proposal would cause Cambridge to descend into “chaos” as it would distribute “extreme height randomly throughout the city.”

Another Cambridge resident, Barbara Walter, claimed the proposal was “geared towards taking away from existing residents, especially homeowners.”

“This whole rework seems overly simplistic and very dumbed down,” said Alex Van Praagh.

The residents urged the city to go back to the drawing board and rework the proposal, taking into account the implications it may have on its residents and the city overall.

Andrea Killory encouraged the board to “try to find something that actually creates affordable housing and protects the character and beauty of the city and also is more environmentally conscientious.”

And Harvard professor Suzanne P. Blier — who serves as president of both the Cambridge Citizens Coalition and the Harvard Square Neighborhood Association — said the plan had echoes of Robert Moses, the mid-century city planner who wielded near-absolute power over New York City’s landscape.

“This is radical and irresponsible. It’s a fool’s paradise, ideologically driven, with no basis in fact on the ground,” she said. “I fear that Cambridge will become the new Robert Moses.”

—Staff writer Benjamin Isaac can be reached at benjamin.isaac@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @benjaminisaac_1.

—Staff writer Laurel M. Shugart can be reached at laurel.shugart@thecrimson.com. Follow them on X @laurelmshugart or on Threads @laurel.shugart.

—Staff writer Grace E. Yoon can be reached at grace.yoon@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @graceunkyoon.