bostonglobe.com · The Boston Globe · September 9, 2026
Opinion | The small housing policy changes that can make a big difference
## Site plan review reform, duplexes-by-right, and zoning for housing on religious land are all pending in the Legislature.
Construction continued at the site of 319 new apartments in Winter Hill on March 5. Lane Turner/Globe Staff
Sometimes, little changes can add up to a big impact.
That’s the case with Massachusetts’ housing policy, where efforts to simplify regulations, speed up permitting, and relax zoning requirements can ultimately result in more homes being built, which the Commonwealth badly needs. It’s a fact that Boston city officials recognize, too, as evidenced by a plan Mayor Michelle Wu is rolling out this week that would use a combination of tax breaks, flexibility in affordable housing requirements, and zoning changes to encourage housing development.
The state budget Governor Maura Healey signed in July includes several technical permitting changes. Among them: It will now be easier for people to build on lots that don’t meet modern zoning rules, and builders will no longer have to worry about zoning rules changing mid-process.
But there are other important housing-related policies that remain locked in conference committee negotiations. Lawmakers should pass them before the legislative session ends on Jan. 5, 2027.
One major issue that’s overdue for resolution is the codification of site plan review. As this board previously wrote, site plan review should be a simple procedural step through which municipal planners confirm that a proposed project adheres to local rules on features like lighting or sewage.
Instead, some communities use site plan review to impose new conditions on a project or delay approval.
Municipal officials and developers have agreed on legislation that would codify site plan review in state law, laying out what factors municipalities can review and providing a timeline for conducting reviews. Both the House and Senate passed site plan review reforms in their economic development bills; all that’s left is for negotiators to reach a final agreement and pass it.
The economic development bill could also include several other significant housing policy changes.
The House incorporated into its version a bill referred to as YIGBY, or Yes in God’s Backyard. This would let religious organizations more easily build multifamily housing without having to obtain a special zoning permit. One study estimated this could open up approximately 5,000 parcels to build up to 60,000 new homes.
Meanwhile, the Senate incorporated a policy that would allow two-family duplexes to be built on any residential lot in Massachusetts, without a special permit. Housing advocacy group Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association has said this could allow the construction of thousands of new, more modestly priced homes.
As CHAPA has reported, other housing-related provisions being considered as part of the economic development bill would authorize new financial incentives for certain types of housing construction and zoning changes, and would provide additional money to fund housing construction.
A separate environmental bond bill, also pending in a conference committee, could ease permitting rules by exempting “priority housing projects,” which have certain environmentally friendly features, from local wastewater and wetlands rules that go beyond state codes.
Meanwhile, other housing policy changes will probably have to wait, but state policy makers shouldn’t forget about those.
Healey said in February that she was forming an advisory group to study whether rules requiring two stairwells in midsize multistory apartment buildings could be relaxed. That commission has started slowly and is only soon expected to hold its first meeting.
On another needed reform, the Massachusetts Architectural Access Board is continuing to discuss how to change the threshold requiring properties under renovation to become fully handicapped accessible to avoid disadvantaging communities with lower property values.
Finally, this editorial board also reported on state building regulations that define high-rise apartments differently from most other state and national model building codes in a way that stymies taller buildings. In February, an advisory committee of the Board of Building Regulations and Standards declined to recommend a change.
Large, impactful bills like the MBTA Communities Act or the Affordable Homes Act are more likely to make the headlines — and to make a bigger dent in the state’s need for housing — than smaller, technical changes to zoning, permitting, and regulations. But together, the small items can add up to more apartments, duplexes, and single-family homes for the young professionals, seniors, and families that Massachusetts wants to attract and retain.