Of concern to those of us who care about the cost of housing for families, the proposal for #217, 229, 233, & 241 Mass. Ave. by North Shore Residential Development only includes one 3-bedroom unit; the remainder of the 46 units have one or two bedrooms. Only 6 will be affordable. The developer has chosen to allot the fewest units possible, rounding down the 15% requirement to 6, as allowed by law, rather than up, which would benefit the community. It was not clear to me whether the 3-bedroom unit (presumably the most costly and the only one that is family sized) was part of that allotment. He is taking advantage of the waiver to increase the height of the building to 5 stories, increasing his profits, while only offering the bare minimum back to the community that is giving him this profitable opportunity. He chose to purchase four properties and speculate on this project.

We, the community stake-holders, should have a say in its appearance and the burden it places on our daily lives in terms of safety, parking, and traffic congestion in the area. How can we absorb the impact of 46 new vehicles as part of a residential project without adding a traffic light in the area? Who would pay for the cost of any new improvements to the infrastructure? Has there been an impact study so that this can be included in the requirements placed on the developer?

The developer’s architect stated at the previous meeting on 9/25/24 that this project would “hopefully” be the wave of the future for East Lexington. Is this the look we aspire to present to those entering historic Lexington? A spartan brick building five stories high that blocks the view of the hills and trees behind it, unlike the existing 3-story buildings currently on Mass. Ave. There is a clear need for affordable housing in this and every other community in Massachusetts, as opposed to luxury housing for wealthy individuals. This project contributes only the minimum number of affordable units as allowed by law and does not respond to the intent of the Act that allows him to build such a huge complex replacing the two-family homes and businesses that currently line our Avenue.

Here is the link to the previous Planning Board meeting where this was
discussed:
https://records.lexingtonma.gov/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=2965892&dbid=0&repo=TownOfLexington

The discussion of this particular project begins at the very bottom of page 5. The next Board meeting on this project is on 11/20 at 6:00 p.m.

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