In a filing with the SJC, Milton argues that it should not have to take any further action because the law’s guidelines were not promulgated properly and, even if that issue was rectified, the Legislature didn’t grant the attorney general the power to enforce the law.
Housing
Battle over parking often really about housing and development
A focus on parking and parking minimums have shaped post-war development in the US for the worse, says author Henry Grabar. But he says we’re in the midst of an encouraging “parking science renaissance” that’s rethinking those policies.
Full SJC to hear Milton rezoning case
Justice Serge Georges Jr. said the case against Milton, which centers around how to enforce the MBTA Communities Act, “raises novel questions of law which are of public importance and which are time sensitive and likely to recur.”
Milton special counsel steps down; MBTA alleged conflict
Tad Heuer, a partner at Foley Hoag, joined Milton’s legal team as a special counsel on Tuesday night and appeared at a hearing before a single justice of the Supreme Judicial Court on Wednesday. But later that day state officials apparently raised concerns that Heuer had a conflict of interest because Foley Hoag in other capacities represents the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the MBTA.
On zoning law, Campbell seeks legal shot across the bow
Campbell wants to skip a trial in Superior Court and go straight to the SJC in May in an effort to establish clearly that Milton and other communities in the state are subject to the law and her office has the authority to enforce compliance.
In housing battles, left-right lines are blurred
The push for zoning reforms that allow for more housing is bringing together a rare convergence of the political left and right.
A divided Milton heads into court
Milton seems unprepared, partly because of the fast-moving pace of legal action and mostly because town officials are as divided as the town they represent.
Both sides overselling MBTA Communities Act
Its real impact will be far less than the rhetoric from both sides of the debate. Proponents tout it as a transformative effort to tackle racial segregation and build affordable housing in our region’s most exclusionary suburbs. There is truth in these claims. But now that we’re shifting to implementation, I worry that overstating the law’s magnitude has contributed to the blowback.
Milton Planning Board eyes two zoning plans
Town officials haven’t said how they will deal with the attorney general’s lawsuit, but the debate at the Planning Board meeting suggested the town will seek to be reclassified as an adjacent community rather than a rapid transit community and in the meantime develop zoning plans to comply with both contingencies.
Emergency shelter system morphing into something new
Gov. Maura Healey placed a cap on shelter families. Now the House is proposing time limits on stays in the shelter system.