New T finder game to test your mapping skills
MBTA Guesser is a new free game that lets users try to figure out where to locate a T stops on a map.Users are given the name of a stop and which line it is, then asked to click on a map of Greater Boston (that you can't zoom in on). There are five rounds per game.The blue pin is your guess and the red pin is where the actual stop is located.Each round awards a maximum score of 5,000 points (the closer you are to the actual stop, the higher your score) for a possible total 25,000 in one game.The user below did not do so well, try the game and see if you can do better!
Flooding impacts everything, including the T
The Communications Earth & Environment journal published a report earlier this year that finds that flooding and related water damages currently cost $24 million per year and are expected to reach $58 million annually by 2030. They warn of potentially permanent inundation of some of the underground and low-lying areas of the MBTA.Lead author, Michael Martello of MIT's Transit Lab said that the MBTA's lack of action in addressing water has "already doubled their risk and is expected to double it again if nothing is done" in a Boston Globe article, which you can read in full here: Climate change could be a costly problem for the MBTA, report says.
Bidding Wars for Apartments on the Green Line
The residential vacancy rate in Greater Boston is below 1%, meaning there are dozens of people (or more) vying for each apartment that becomes available.Boston.com reporter Jim Morrison recently posted a story about the rental bidding wars happening along the Green Line extension in Medford and Somerville. The article details an apartment (probably a one-bedroom, but it doesn’t say) that went on the market for $2,450 a month. 37 people came through for the showing, they accepted 11 applications and rented it to someone who bid $2,700 a month – 10% over the asking price.The article says that of 93 units rented in Medford in Feb – April, 10 went for over asking price and in Somerville, 51 units were rented with 7 for more than the asking price.The addition of the Green Line into Medford and Somerville is making them highly desirable for people who commute to jobs served by it. Some housing experts say the vacancy rate is too low and is contributing to the exodus of young people from Greater Boston.
Is New Bedford Trying to Stop the South Coast Rail?
Despite clamoring for years for commuter rail service in New Bedford, officials in that town are now threatening to sue the MBTA for seizing city land in order to construct said rail.A May 2023 article by Matt Stout in the Boston Globe lays out a complaint sent by New Bedford officials in April 2023 saying that the land taken should be returned to the city.The MBTA paid $486,627 for the land and Stout wonders if this potential law suit is simply a way for the city to sell the land at a higher price, rather than a genuine attempt to stop the South Coast Rail project, which would only benefit New Bedford residents.To learn more about the situation, read the Globe article here.
Is the MBTA Communities Zoning Plan Realistic?
Former MA Governor Charlie Baker signed into law a requirement for all Eastern and Central MA communities served by public transit (MBTA, commuter rail, or bus station) to create a high-density zoning district by right, within a half-mile of a train or bus station. The high density districts must be of at least 50 acres, 25 of them contiguous and allow multi-families by right.Charlotte Kahn published an excellent analysis of the problem with this plan back in March 2022, while the public comment session was still open.Some of the main critiques are:
The plan calls for massive numbers of new residential units in towns that are already quite dense. For example, Somerville is required to construct 9,067 new units. 13,477 are required in Cambridge, and 12,642 in Worcester.
There is no requirement about affordability of these units, so towns that are already prone to high-end market rate units will just get more, which may push out lower earners.
"Upzoning" to these densities will mean displacement of existing residents and businesses and the destruction of green space and historic buildings.
When first proposed, towns were allowed to opt-out, with the understanding that they would not be allowed to access funding through the Housing Choice, Local Capital Projects, or Mass Works streams. These are major public funding sources for some communities and not used at all by others.But this year, Massachusetts has a new Governor and a new Attorney General, who have now ruled that there is no opt-out option. "Compliance with the MBTA Communities Zoning Law is mandatory," said AG Andrea Joy Campbell.The AG press release goes on to say how important safe and affordable housing is to the state government, yet the MBTA law says nothing about affordability or the rational behind the plan.This topic seems to be flying under the radar of major news organizations, but we at Daly Appraisal Services will continue to monitor it and share updates.