Zoning

SJC Confines Zoning Standing Analysis To Actual Proposed Use; Speculation As To Future Uses Is Irrelevant

August 5, 2025 / August 5, 2025 by Tess Edwards | Leave a Comment

Last week, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) reversed an Appeals Court panel in a strongly-worded decision concerning abutter standing to appeal a zoning decision, Stone v. Zoning Bd. of Appeals of Northborough (pdf). The plaintiff abutters appealed a use variance that the Town of Northborough Zoning Board of Appeals granted to Cable Matters Inc. […]

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Land Use Zoning

Mass. Land Court Rules Short Term Rentals Are Not a Lawful Accessory Use in Nantucket Zoning District

June 17, 2025 / June 17, 2025 by Douglas Troyer | Leave a Comment

In a case of significant interest to the legal community and especially to Nantucket property owners, the Land Court recently issued its long-awaited decision in Ward v. Town of Nantucket (pdf) (Ward II), concerning the application of the Town of Nantucket’s zoning bylaw (the Bylaw) to short-term rentals (STRs). The defendant homeowners had been renting […]

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Affordable Housing Land Use Subdivision Zoning

More good news for housing production: Mass. Appeals Court rules legislative permit extensions stack on top of equitable tolling

May 14, 2025 by Tess Edwards | Leave a Comment

Last week,  in an important decision for land-use and development lawyers, the Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled in Palmer Renewable Energy, LLC v. Zoning Bd. of Appeals of Springfield that permit extensions granted by the Legislature “stack” on top of equitable tolling triggered by the appeals process. The Land Court had found that permit extensions under […]

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Affordable Housing Land Use Zoning

Mass. “Unlocking Housing Production Commission” Recommends Land Use and Zoning Reforms

February 26, 2025 / February 27, 2025 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment

Last Friday, Massachusetts’ “Unlocking Housing Production Commission,” established by Gov. Maura Healey in October, 2023, released its report titled “Building for Tomorrow.” The report lays out a series of recommendations to address the Commonwealth’s housing crisis, organized into several categories: Economic Incentives and Workforce Development; Land Use and Zoning; Regulations, Codes, and Permitting; and Statewide […]

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Affordable Housing Land Use Zoning

Breaking: Mass. SJC rules MBTA Communities Act is constitutional, but its implementing “guidelines” are invalid (for now)

January 8, 2025 / January 10, 2025 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment

In its eagerly anticipated decision issued this morning in Attorney General v. Town of Milton, the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) has ruled that the MBTA Communities Act (the Act), which former Governor Charlie Baker signed into law in early 2021, is constitutional, and the Attorney General has the authority to enforce it. The court went […]

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Affordable Housing Land Use Variances Zoning

Christmas In August For Massachusetts Real Estate Developers Is Good News For Housing Production

August 14, 2024 / August 14, 2024 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment

In its $5.2 billion Affordable Homes Act (AHA) signed by Gov. Maura Healey last week, the Massachusetts Legislature came down the chimney with some presents that have been on developers’ wish lists for decades. In addition to making accessory dwelling units (ADUs) up to 900 square feet a by-right use in residential zoning districts (see […]

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Affordable Housing Real Estate Zoning

In Massachusetts, Your In-Law Apartment No Longer Makes You An Outlaw

August 9, 2024 / August 21, 2024 by Tess Edwards | Leave a Comment

As has been widely reported, Governor Maura Healey on Tuesday signed into law the Affordable Homes Act (AHA), also known as the Housing Bond Bill (H.4977), which the Legislature passed in the wee hours of August 1, 2024. Among other important provisions, the AHA makes accessory dwelling units (ADUs) a by-right use in single-family zoning […]

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Zoning

Breaking: Mass. high court confirms that in Boston, zoning appeal bond can be required without finding of bad faith or malice

July 10, 2024 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment

In its decision this morning in Shoucair v. Board of Appeal of Boston, the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) held that in court appeals under § 11 of the Boston Zoning Enabling Act (Section 11), the trial judge can require the plaintiff to post an appeal bond without a preliminary finding that the appeal has been […]

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Land Use Zoning

Can a Person Ever Establish Zoning Standing by Alleging Diminution in Property Value? The Appeals Court Whispers the Answer

June 27, 2024 by Gareth Orsmond | Leave a Comment

The Massachusetts Appeals Court recently addressed diminution of property value as a basis for standing to file a zoning appeal. In Pobeda RT II, LLC v. Zoning Bd. of Appeals of Watertown, the court affirmed that individual property value, by itself, isn’t a protected interest that can serve as a basis for standing to appeal […]

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Land Use Regulatory Takings Subdivision Zoning

Supreme Court’s Sheetz decision casts doubt on validity of Massachusetts inclusionary zoning regulations

June 3, 2024 / July 15, 2025 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment

The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Sheetz v. County of El Dorado may have a profound impact on inclusionary zoning ordinances and bylaws in Massachusetts. I suspect few of those regulations – if challenged – will pass constitutional muster under what’s now a quartet of crucial, related Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decisions: Nollan v. California […]

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