HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4416        FILED ON: 1/7/2016

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No.         

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Ruth B. Balser, (BY REQUEST)

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act establishing a special commission to study the feasibility of developing up to three-story buildings over the Massachusetts Turnpike.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4416        FILED ON: 1/7/2016

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No.         

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Eighty-Ninth General Court
(2015-2016)

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An Act establishing a special commission to study the feasibility of developing up to three-story buildings over the Massachusetts Turnpike.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

A.There shall be a commission to study the feasibility of development over Route 90, specifically as it passes through the city of Newton.

B. The Commission shall consist of the Secretary of Housing and Economic Development and the Secretary of Transportation or their respective designees, who shall serve as co-chairs of the commission; the state comptroller or the comptroller's designee; the executive directors of the Massachusetts Development Financing Agency and the Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency or their designees; the Mayor of Newton, or his designee; one member of the House, who shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House; one member of the Senate, who shall be appointed by the President of the Senate; the executive director of the Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association, or her designee; and the executive director of the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation, or his designee.

C.The Commission shall determine the technical, legal, and financial feasibility of developing up to three-story buildings over Route 90 in the City of Newton. The Commission shall study the feasibility of constructing these buildings for commercial uses, residential, including but not limited to affordable housing uses, and mixed use properties. The commission shall seek in its deliberations input from local businesses and potential developers. The commission shall evaluate the experience of Massachusetts cities that already have development over Route 90, including but not limited to the City of Boston, evaluating the performance of similar commercial properties over major highways. The commission shall evaluate the experience of cities in other states with similar developments over major highways.

D.The Commission shall hold at least one public hearing in the City of Newton.

E.The Commission shall publish its findings and recommendations, together with drafts of legislation, if any, necessary to carry those recommendations into effect, in a written report not later than 2 years after the effective date of this act. The report shall be published on the official website of the Commonwealth, and shall be contemporaneously filed with the House and Senate Committees on Ways and Means, and the House and Senate Chairs of the Joint Committee on Housing, and the House and Senate Chairs of the Committee on Community Development and Small Business.