Compromise Reached for Zoning Petition, First Change to Laws in 50 Years

CAMBRIDGE, MA-The City Council here passed a compromise version of a zoning petition that was created to reduce commercial density, traffic and increase affordable housing. The petition had faced opposition from local commercial property owners.

As initially written by the city’s Planning Board, the petition had proposed major changes to the city’s zoning ordinance that would significantly effect the development potential of commercial properties here. Most contentious among the petition’s issues was its proposed measure to limit the amount of rooftop mechanicals, which would have had a direct impact on the city’s booming biotechnology industry.