Affordable Housing, obviously it is needed. How we get there has become a hot topic. Chapter 40B, the Massachusetts Affordable Housing Law is being brought to the ballot box. This will have significant ramifications.
If it loses, many people in need of affordable housing will be disadvantaged.
If it survives, the environmental controls needed to ensure orderly development patterns will be destroyed.
If it loses, some form of substitute is almost guaranteed. That substitute could be a new, more community friendly statute which has been called for for years. Or, it could be a more onerous replacement imposed through judicial mandate.
If it survives, backers will be strengthened in their resolve, as Chapter 40B will now have the backing of a popular mandate. A mandate that could based upon low mid-term voter turn-out.
If it loses, obviously, the same low mid-term voter turn-out could be used to support the creation of replacement legislation not much different than what is present today.
If it survives, there will be less of a push to fix all that is wrong with the present Chapter 40B.
It is going to be a tough decision. When I walk in to that voting booth in November I am not clear which way I will vote. I believe in affordable housing. I do not believe it needs to be balanced such that every tiny out of the way community needs a project under the statute.
Chapter 40B needs to be fixed, more control given back to cities and towns. The Ballot Box cannot fix bad legislation. However, a vote to keep Chapter 40B almost ensures it will not be fixed. We are at the midnight hour, one way or the other. A vote one way does not support my head or my heart, but a vote the other way is similarly disruptive.
Affordable housing at the cost of environmental protection. Or environmental protection at the expense of affordable housing.
