I have been hesitant to engage in the housing discussion on LincolnTalk, but after reading a few recent comments about the motives for some of the Codman Road residents and their advocacy in favor of the Housing Choice Act and our road being included in it, I am inspired to weigh in.
I live on Codman Road and was one of the residents that advocated in favor of my area of South Lincoln to be included in the proposals submitted to the Commonwealth to be in compliance with the Housing Choice Act. I consider myself a housing advocate and generally speaking am in favor of the legislation. There is a housing crisis in this country, and in Massachusetts, and every town can do their part to contribute a small bit to increased inventory to support this issue. I also consider myself an advocate of public transportation and am a frequent user of the commuter rail. My family is able to currently be a one car family largely in part to my proximity to the train into Boston. I am in support of all plans that include these subdistricts to be as close to the Commuter Rail as possible, as I believe that to be in the spirit of this legislation, and also what is best for our town planning. I love Lincoln, I think Lincoln is an amazing place to live and raise children. Lincoln is over 40% conservation land and nothing is ever going to change that. I believe that the effects of the HCA to loosen a bit of the zoning laws in certain subdistricts to not be by-right single-family housing is a good thing. I believe towns like Lincoln that are looking to support a small commercial center and maintain services like a grocery store need to modify a bit of the by-right zoning to ensure that things like having a grocery store are sustainable. Let me clarify that my beliefs are not driven by any personal financial aspirations linked to my property. For those seeking assurance, my lot, surrounded by wetlands, isn't viable for further development. Our family home, built in 1951, has always stood here, and we have no intentions of leaving. So I am just here to say - yes, in my backyard, I support the HCA, I support Codman road being included as one of the subdistricts. Every town can do a small part to support more housing inventory and every town can do a small part to allow more housing near public transportation. I’m not looking to engage in any LincolnTalk back and forth on my thoughts on this, but if anyone is looking to discuss these topics further offline, please feel free to write me an email and we can grab a cup of coffee.
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