Recommendations for the Development of Cambridge Street from the Inman Square Neighborhood Association (ISNA,) June 2022
Through a variety of mediums - emails, private and public conversations, a survey, and two Zoom meetings (June 9, 2022 and June 23, 2022) - the Inman Square Neighborhood Association gathered input from approximately 50 of our members regarding Cambridge Street development. ISNA members will continue to meet and discuss the City’s “Our Cambridge Streets” project throughout its planning and execution stages.
Below is a summary of how ISNA members felt about the topics where we reached consensus. There was not enough discussion time for consensus in other areas, such as residential and commercial building heights and bike lanes/parking conflict, but we have included individual recommendations in those cases.
ISNA members have a deep appreciation for the great diversity in Inman Square and its neighboring communities. We value the organizations and institutions that contribute to wonderful celebrations, events and assistance to community members who need it. We want the neighborhood to continue to be welcoming for all people. A changing environment must cultivate a vision of inclusiveness, peace and social justice.
Several persons urged the need for an overarching urban design for Cambridge St. development from Inman Square to First St. that addresses all our recommendations. We expect the City to include ISNA among stakeholders who receive updates on the Cambridge Street development planning process, and to include ISNA in the conversation in advance of any final decisions. ISNA will continue discussions with all of its members about issues where consensus has not yet been reached, collaborate with other neighborhood organizations, and continue to educate people in the neighborhood.
Thus far, ISNA members’ consensus recommendations regarding future development along Cambridge Street from Inman Square to First Street are:
Protect and expand green space and tree canopy;
increase assistance to small businesses;
create safe and pleasant walking environment;
do not allow any more labs;
emphasize affordable housing in new development.
1. Protect and expand green space and tree canopy on and adjacent to Cambridge Street
Employ adaptive measures through increased tree canopy, more landscaped green space and permeable surfaces
Strictly adhere to open space, green space and tree protection policies.
Introduce a mix of requirements and incentives for reflective pavements and roofs, shade canopies and structures.
Establish one or more attractive and accessible additional green spaces.
Require an overall increase of green space and tree cover in annual development approvals.
Increase tree protections on private residential land.
Include more green space and outdoor seating spaces in front of dense housing areas, i.e. Inman Square apartments and Mill River housing.
2. Expand existing City assistance to small businesses, and establish new programs, such as:
Assist in purchasing retail space
Assist making retail space rental affordable
Require ground floor retail in the vast majority of new construction or substantial rehab
Ensure means for sufficient and efficient deliveries to small businesses,
Incentivize a high diversity of small businesses
Activate and promote community-oriented retail--creating transparent storefronts which must dominate first-floor commercial frontage
Comments: Retail trends indicate that there will not be enough retail to fill all of the first-floor spaces on the street. The vast majority of first floor space should
be retail, but not all. The minority of first-floor space that is not retail should be grouped, so that there are clusters of uninterrupted retail, and clusters of uninterrupted first-floor office and first floor residential.
3. Enhance the safety and quality of the walking experience:
Improve safety at intersection crossings and improve standardized signal
b) Eliminate sidewalk walking hazards
c) Increase shade trees and green highlights
d) Maximize walking access to the Union Square T
4. No additional laboratories should be allowed on Cambridge St.:
Locate labs in zoned lab districts because of their noise, their 24/7 schedules, and unclear dangers they pose to their surroundings.
5. Significantly increase affordable housing—There is consensus that affordable housing development should be top priority, along with preservation and expansion of green space and tree canopy; but there was no consensus on parameters for this affordable housing development.
Suggested ideas included:
Increase the allowed building heights for housing from the current 35 feet to at least five stories, 6 stories with first floor retail
Increase the allowed building heights for affordable housing to at least 7 stories, 8 with first floor retail
Double City spending on affordable housing for the next 4 years, including for purchasing a few parcels along Cambridge St. for 15-20 story high-rise affordable housing
Expand the inclusionary requirement downward from 10 units or more, to 6 units, so that developments of 6-9 units would require 1 affordable unit. Lower minimum income from 50% to 30% of median AMI household incomes, and increase the requirement from 20% to 25% of units by adding 5% for middle-income households
Have the City purchase a few sites where 15-20 story residential buildings will provide the least amount of shade over residential buildings, and require that 15% of units be 3 bedroom, and 10% be 4 bedroom. The City should retain control of these three sites through 75-year ground leases to developers
Increase the affordable housing portion of total annual square footage of new construction or substantial rehab approved by the City must be 5% greater than the average of all approved development in the City for the last 5 years
Increase the production and availability of low income condos
Below are issues where there was no consensus, either because time did not yet allow for adequate discussion, or because differences of opinion were clear. Issues included:
6. Building height;
7. parking for small businesses and Cambridge residents without their own parking;
8. setbacks;
9. production of an urban design for Cambridge St. development from Inman Square to First Street;
10. no majority glass building surfaces on new Cambridge St. development.
6. Building Heights: While ISNA members did agree there should be clear building height limits, we did not come to a clear consensus on what they should be. Most members looked more favorably on residential development than commercial development, and most discussion centered around residential building heights. Views ranged from no increase at all on allowed height, to allowing 15-20 story high rises for housing to maximize affordable inclusionary units. Within the context of residential building heights, suggestions included those in the housing section above. Other individuals’ recommendations are:
Make no increases in the current 35 feet limit because the city is too dense and taller buildings would disrupt the character of the area.
Require step-down height limits on the north and south sides of Cambridge St, to maximize sunlight on the street, and step-down limits where buildings abut low-rise housing.
Limit commercial developments to 5 stories, with 85% of total new or substantially rehabbed frontage requiring retail on the first floor.
7. Ensure parking for small businesses and Cambridge residents without their own parking:
Do not reduce zoned parking requirements from their current levels, except for a block or two into Cambridge from the new Union Square T stop. This means underground parking for both all new, and rehabbed buildings built up from one or two stories into taller buildings, or for new structured parking shared by several developments; 2) In cases where this is unfeasible, the developer would be obligated to lease spaces in new public structured parking just off Cambridge St.
The City should develop 2 small structured parking facilities to replace parking taken by protected bike lanes on Cambridge St., plus an additional 25 spaces in each one, reserved for Inman Square and East Cambridge residents without their own parking, with extremely low fees for these residents.
Create additional parking on side streets to maintain and assist commercial properties on Cambridge St.
8. Setbacks:
There was no discussion of setbacks, but a few thought that: Commercial use with no required setback on Cambridge St. should continue, as should no required side setbacks, since It is worthwhile to preserve uninterrupted commercial frontage. In the rear of the commercial zone, there should be a required 10-foot setback. New residential space should require setbacks on all sides.
9. The City should produce an urban design for Cambridge St. development from Inman Square to First Street, which would include, among other things, the above consensus recommendations. This will facilitate community discussion and inclusion, and can be modified to generate as much community consensus as possible. The initial design should be completed quickly as a draft, to generate this discussion and consensus seeking.
10. No majority glass building surfaces on new Cambridge St. development recommended by several individuals.