State Policies and Initiatives

Upon taking office in January 2003, Governor Mitt Romney created the Office for Commonwealth Development (OCD) to manage the built and natural environments by promoting sustainable development through the integration of energy, environmental, housing and transportation policies, programs, and investments.

Sustainable development, or smart growth, is not about no growth, it's about growing where it makes the most sense: in and around central business districts or traditional city or town centers, near transit stations, or in areas that have been previously developed for commercial, industrial or institutional uses. It's about protecting natural resources by developing in ways that are consistent with the Commonwealth's Sustainable Development Principles.

Under the leadership of the Office for Commonwealth Development there have been three overarching goals for sustainable development: focus investments, regulate strategically, and take a leadership role on sustainable development. Four agencies are part of the umbrella of OCD and direct these initiatives: the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, the Department of Housing and Community Development, the Executive Office of Transportation and the Division of Energy Resources.

The state is working to fulfill its smart growth responsibilities so that it can be a full partner with communities. Primary goals include the incorporation of the Sustainable Development Principles into the policies and programs of all agencies and ensuring that state infrastructure investments encourage smart growth instead of subsidizing sprawl. The following are representative of state smart growth efforts:

Highway Design Manual

A new Highway Project Development and Design Manual is being developed to incorporate principles of context-sensitive design, accommodation of all modes, and traffic calming. It is being produced through a collaborative process, is intended to be the "most progressive in the country", and to reflect a focus on achieving smart growth via better day-to-day decisions.

Transit Oriented Development (TOD)

A Transit-Oriented Development Initiative has been launched by the MBTA in partnership with OCD agencies. Through the TOD initiative, model collaborative planning processes have been initiated with four communities, with more to follow in up to 30 localities. The Office for Commonwealth Development is currently developing an illustrated guideline entitled, "What is Transit-Oriented Development?". Two new programs, the Transit Node Program and the Transit Oriented Development Program, will both invite funding proposals in the summer of 2005.

Long Range Transportation Plan

The Romney Administration, the Office for Commonwealth Development (OCD) and the Executive Office of Transportation (EOT) recently released the first statewide, multimodal, and fiscally constrained long-range transportation plan in the history of the Commonwealth. A Framework for Thinking - A Plan for Action will serve as the foundation for transportation policy and spending decisions for the "post-Big Dig" future. Highlights of the 20 year $31 billion dollar plan include a commitment to mass transit, an aggressive action plan for addressing the upcoming "baby boom" of bridges in need or repair, and a responsible balance of spending across all other modes of transportation. OCD is especially focused on the land use implications of the plan, in particular how implementation of the plan can ensure outcomes consistent with the OCD Sustainable Development Principles. Consistent with the Romney administration's "Fix-It-First" policy, the majority of funds will be dedicated to bridge repair, highway reconstruction, de-bottlenecking, intersection and interchange modernization and ensuring that our transit system is in a state of good repair.

Transportation Project Criteria

Consistent with the long-range transportation plan, the Administration has worked with the state metropolitan planning organizations to modify funding criteria. The Administration will only support those transportation projects that incorporate smart growth policies or include plans for housing development. It is now state policy that local zoning practices must be supportive of smart growth before the state will invest in new infrastructure.

Commonwealth Capital

The Commonwealth Capital policy of the Office for Commonwealth Development coordinates state capital spending programs that affect development patterns to ensure that state investments promote projects consistent with the Sustainable Development Principles and partnerships with municipalities seeking to advance the Commonwealth's development interests. Commonwealth Capital explicitly endorses planning and zoning measures that are in accord with Administration policy and encourages municipalities to implement them by linking state spending programs to municipal land use practices. More than 20 state grant programs representing $97 million in grants and $450 million in low interest loans provide a financial incentive to encourage communities to implement smart growth consistent land use policies.

Fix-It-First

Fix-It-First is a statewide commitment to the repair and maintenance of our existing infrastructure - our roads and bridges, our transit systems, our public housing, our historic structures, our parks, our brownfields and greyfields, our skating rinks and our swimming pools. The Fix-It-First policy is in part an effort to stop state infrastructure investments (new roads, sewer lines, etc.) that lead to sprawling growth, and to concentrate growth in developed areas by improving existing infrastructure.

Land Use Statutory Reform

Massachusetts was recently listed by the American Planning Association as one of the states with the most outdated land-use laws. While the responsibility for land use planning and regulation rests with each of Massachusetts' 351 cities and towns, the authority to do so effectively is often undermined by confusing and unduly limiting state law. The proposed Massachusetts Land Use Reform Act (MLURA) would be the first major updating of the Commonwealth's zoning and planning/subdivision control statutes in 30 and over 50 years, respectively. The Act encourages communities to adopt or update their local master plans and enables them to develop effective land use regulations that are consistent with those plans. The Administration recognizes the need for statutory reform, and is working with the sponsors of MLURA and other reform legislation to help shape a legislative package consistent with smart growth.

Smart Growth Awards

Many communities have already taken major steps to encourage smart growth. The Governor's Smart Growth Leadership Awards were created by OCD to honor those communities and the organizations that support them, and to recognize their efforts as models for all 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts. Encouraging these smart growth efforts to continue is the focus of the Governor's Smart Growth Innovation Awards. They provide an opportunity for municipalities to get the support they need to move ahead with the best and most creative smart growth development projects and planning efforts across the Commonwealth.

Smart growth grants to cities and towns

Providing communities with assistance in the redrafting of their land use regulations is important to achieving the Administration's smart growth goals. The Priority Development Fund (PDF) provides $3 million over 2 years for land use planning and development projects related to housing production. The Smart Growth Technical Assistance Grant Program of the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs (EOEA) offers grants to the Commonwealth's municipalities and Regional Planning Agencies in support of their efforts to implement land use regulations that are consistent with Massachusetts' Sustainable Development Principles. These grants are specifically intended to help municipalities improve their Commonwealth Capital score (by implementing the environmental and planning practices listed as Commonwealth Capital criteria), and pursue other smart growth consistent actions, with a preference for those from their Community Development or Master Plans.

Smart Growth in Massachusetts: Regional Discussions

Recently Secretary Foy (OCD) traveled throughout the Commonwealth to discuss smart growth and its regional impacts at "Smart Growth Seminars" organized in partnership with Massachusetts' Regional Planning Commissions. The regional discussions were met with strong support and interest from local and municipal leaders, advocates, the business community, as well as the general public who discussed the Romney Administration's new programs, made suggestions, and shared ideas with the Office for Commonwealth Development.

Smart Growth Zoning Law (Chapter 40R)

This new state statute offers a framework and financial incentives for municipalities to create "smart growth zoning districts" in eligible locations (City, town, village centers/commercial districts, around transit stations, and in other appropriate smart growth locations). Districts must meet minimum density requirements, have the necessary infrastructure in place, and provide affordable units.

Double Housing Starts

Governor Romney's housing strategy is to substantially increase production while simultaneously re-directing growth to transit nodes, downtowns, and commercial and industrial districts appropriate for mixed-use redevelopment. Efforts focus on the lack of zoning for traditional, compact housing and mixed-use development in town centers and on previously developed land, and include incentives to municipalities and developers for smart-growth housing production. Measures taken to date to alleviate the ongoing housing crisis include 40B reform, passage of 40R rezoning legislation, allocation by MassHousing of $100 million to the Priority Development Fund (PDF), of $10 million to the Transit Node Program, and a $20 million dollar expansion of Affordable Housing Tax Credit Program.

District Improvement Financing

Chapter 43 of the Act of 2003 authorized the District Improvement Financing Program (DIF). DIF is a public financing alternative available to all cities and towns in the Commonwealth. It enables municipalities to fund public works, infrastructure, and development projects by allocating future, incremental tax revenues collected from a predefined district to pay project costs. The municipal investment is designed to stimulate private investment, which, in turn, increases the taxable value of property and generates the incremental taxes.