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PROJECT ELIGIBILITY OVERVIEW

The Sponsor will be seeking permitting under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40B.

Request for Project Eligibility Letter

Project Eligibility Application

CHAPTER 40B/COMPREHENSIVE PERMIT

Chapter 40B is a state statute that encourages the development of low- and moderate-income housing by providing a streamlined permitting process and relief from local zoning requirements.  Also known as the Comprehensive Permit Law, Chapter 40B was enacted in 1969 to help address the shortage of affordable housing in Massachusetts.  The law requires that at least 20-25 percent of units in a development have long-term affordability restrictions.  Under Chapter 40B, the local Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) is the permit granting authority.  The ZBA must review and make decisions (approve, approve with conditions, or deny comprehensive permits) in a public hearing setting.  The State Housing Appeals Committee hears appeals for projects in communities that have less than 10 percent of their housing affordable to low- and moderate-income households.

A prerequisite to filing with the ZBA for a comprehensive permit is the issuance of a Project Eligibility Letter from a subsidizing agency.  The Sponsor has submitted an application for project eligibility to the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (the Subsidizing agency).

RESOURCES

Chapter 40B Fact Sheet

Rules of the Newton Zoning Board of Appeals