Sign the Petition
To date, 657 Cambridge residents have signed the petition below to express their strong opposition to the 2072 Mass Ave project as proposed. Signers include a majority of the residents of the affordable housing Russell Apartments for seniors/disabled, located a few feet from the proposed site.
A large majority of the signers are close neighbors of the proposed project, as the map illustrates. Click on the image for more detail.
In their March 12, 2021, revised plan, the developers proposed a 48-unit building of 9 stories on Mass Ave and Walden St, dropping to 5 stories farther down along Walden. The reduction of 1 unit and 1 partial story did not satisfy the requests made in the petition below, nor alter its essence.
During the May 20 hearing, the Board of Zoning Appeal did not vote approval of the 9/5-story proposal, asking for a further reduction in height; see Updates for details.
North Walden Neighbors continues to ask the Board of Zoning Appeal to require the study of the safety of the intersection, the reduction of the size of the proposed building, and the inclusion of setbacks in the development.
Petition
IMPROVE SAFETY AND REDUCE DENSITY
OF 2072 MASS AVE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT
To the City of Cambridge Board of Zoning Appeal:
We, the undersigned, Cambridge residents many of whom live in close proximity to the intersection of Mass Ave and Walden St, have grave concerns regarding the proposed 100% affordable housing development at 2072 Mass Ave.
The building (9 stories facing Mass Ave and 6 stories facing the Walden neighborhood) has 49 units for up to 200 residents, a storefront, 3 restricted onsite parking spaces and 2 drop off spaces. The Floor Area Ratio (FAR) of the proposed development is 6.7, too dense for this neighborhood. By comparison, it is 315% higher than the average FAR of 2.1 for the other 4 affordable housing developments within a ½ mile radius of Porter Square.
The proposed development sits on a small 8,514 square foot lot, located on a dangerous, congested corner that poses safety issues for pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers. There is a history of accidents at the intersection and even a tragic death of a young girl on a bicycle. The current proposal would likely exacerbate these long-standing problems as the building takes up the entire lot, without any setback or ground greenspace.
The developers’ application to the City asks to waive 18 separate zoning and other regulations, many of which if waived would make the intersection even more dangerous. The developers’ request is well beyond the recently passed Affordable Housing Overlay’s maximums that were discussed over a two-year period.
As neighbors who will be directly impacted by this proposed development, we are asking the City of Cambridge to:
- Conduct a Traffic Impact Study to analyze the impact of the proposed development on the Mass Ave/Walden St intersection as well as the surrounding streets (using pre-pandemic conditions);
- Instruct the developers to resize the building in accordance with the Mass Ave Overlay and with the Affordable Housing Overlay guidelines on building size;
- Enforce the safety- and space-related zoning regulations.
To sign the petition, send an email to northwaldenneighbors@gmail.com
State “I agree to sign the petition” and give your name and street address.
NWN and 2072 Mass Ave 