‘The Risk is Real’: Millions at Stake with MBTA Compliance

January 6, 2025
• Until at least Jan. 14, Needham is out of compliance with the mandated MBTA Communities Act. Should voters in the upcoming referendum overturn the established zoning, the town could lose out on funding, officials say.

Needham entered the new year as one of 31 Massachusetts communities out of compliance with the MBTA Communities Act, which requires certain municipalities to establish zoning for multi-family housing. The town is also one of at least three with a scheduled referendum that could possibly prolong Needham’s non-compliant status.

Deputy Town Manager Katie King explained the projects Needham looks to fund through state and federal dollars and how the town’s compliance status with the MBTA Communities Act might interfere.

When was Needham required to adopt compliant zoning?

Needham needed to adopt compliant zoning by the end of calendar year 2024, or Dec. 31. At the October Special Town Meeting, Needham adopted the Neighborhood Housing Plan. The state’s Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities approved the plan in late December, deeming it compliant with the law.

Is Needham compliant?

No. After the citizens’ petition prompted the upcoming referendum, the EOHLC no longer views Needham as compliant, beginning Jan. 1.

“The referendum vote has suspended our status, has basically suspended the zoning,” King said. “So right now, we’re considered non-compliant.”

Could state and federal grants be compromised before the referendum on Jan. 14?

“It’s hard to say with certainty, because funding decisions — there’s so many funds that are taking compliance status into consideration, and there are different awarding authorities. They all have different timelines. So I think there is some risk in the next week, but it’s really hard to speak with any specifics. There’s not one funding source that I think a decision will be made in the next eight days. So there is a risk, but I think it’s tenable kind of looking now to Jan. 14. Beyond that, the risk grows.”

What specific funding is tied with compliance?

The Highland Avenue redevelopment project — between Webster Street and Great Plain Avenue — is projected to cost $20 million, King said. The Boston Regional Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Transportation Improvement Program awards funding for those projects and is “taking compliance into consideration,” King said. Needham put forward “a really competitive application” for those dollars, she added.

Funding for the Needham Housing Authority’s Linden Street redevelopment could also be in jeopardy. The NHA has already been awarded two $500,000 state grants for the project, but if Needham remains non-compliant, the organization will not receive that funding. Without that funding, NHA Board Chair Reg Foster said “the reality is the project cannot go forward.”

U.S. Rep. Jake Auchincloss has also pledged to withhold federal funds from communities in his district that fail to comply with the MBTA Communities Act. That could include $1.1 million for stormwater management projects in Needham, though the federal budget is still in the works. Auchincloss previously secured $2 million for the redesign of the Center Street – Central Avenue bridge that connects to Dover.

Auchincloss typically reaches out to communities during that process in March, King said.

All told, King said “the risk to the town is really in the millions.”

“This is real money that really supports town-priority projects that need to happen,” King said.

Does ‘taking compliance into consideration’ mean Needham would be disqualified from funding?

Some state grants don’t allow non-compliant communities to apply, but the majority do, King said. However, compliance status does become a considerable factor in which municipalities receive funding, she said.

“The reality is, so much of state and federal funding for grant programs is discretionary, and there’s always a limited pot of funds, that if there’s anything that makes Needham less competitive or less likely to get those funds — even though we’re still able to apply — the risk that we won’t get funded does go up quite a bit,” King said. “There’s so many requests out there and limited funds, so you might be able to apply, but the likelihood of getting awarded is low.”

When does Needham expect to hear back about funding?

For the Highland Avenue redevelopment: “It’s an iterative process,” meaning the town and awarding authority will exchange feedback and information until Needham receives a score. There is no hard deadline.

It’s difficult to determine what and how different projects might be compromised, as “the list of funds at risk is constantly growing and evolving,” King said. The town may not know a grant will consider compliance until the notice for the funding round is posted, she said.

“It’s kind of a hard thing to wrap your arms around, but the risk is real,” she said.

What happens if Needham loses out on those funds, either because of non-compliance or another reason?

“When we’re not able to secure state and federal funding, the only resources usually available to us are local tax dollars. Those are limited,” King said. “So then, it’s a discussion about what is the priority within the tax revenue that the town has to complete these projects. So, often it means just dealing with trade-offs in terms of what projects move forward, which are deferred and placed on a longer timeline.”

Tax revenue for FY25 totals about $266.2 million. About $192.5 million comes from property tax.

If the referendum vote upholds the zoning — or another Town Meeting adopts new compliant zoning — how does Needham go about correcting its compliance status for grants?

The EOHLC maintains an active list of compliant communities on its website, and King expects entities awarding grant funds will consult that list regularly as the make their decisions.

“Often when we submit grants, one of the fields will ask, ‘Is your town compliant?’ And so, any grant that goes in — if the voters uphold the zoning — any grant that goes in after Jan. 14, the town will always check that box ‘yes, we’re compliant.’ Our non-compliance status is really Jan. 1 to Jan. 14, and so I think we’ll make sure that any requests that have gone in that window, if any, that those awarding authorities know the status.”

Are there any other consequences tied with non-compliance?

“The attorney general’s office has been clear that they use this law as being a requirement of all communities and not optional. That has led to their litigation with the Town of Milton, who did not uphold their zoning,” King said. “So I think, aside from funding the other consequences, potentially litigation.”’

“The zoning that went to Town Meeting was really shaped by the community, primarily to address the unmet housing needs in Needham,” she said, “and compliance status and protecting state dollars was not the primary driver during the community conversations to shape the zoning, but it is important.”

What could potential litigation with the state cost the town?

That’s unclear.

“I think because that case with Milton is pending, I think we’ll all know a lot more when the ruling comes out for that,” King said.