Middletown considers zoning ordinance – how it would mandate new affordable housing

Zane Wolfang, Newport Daily News
Updated ·4 min read

Middletown officials are looking at a zoning ordinance to increase the affordable housing stock in town.

Middletown’s planning board held a special meeting and public workshop to discuss and solicit public feedback about a significant draft amendment to the town zoning ordinance.

If passed, the new inclusionary zoning ordinance would require the building of affordable housing stock alongside market-rate residential units in any large development proposed for most of Middletown’s residential and limited business zones.

Town planner Ron Wolanski gave a presentation April 6 on the proposed amendment, which would require all major subdivisions (six lots or more) and residential land development projects (six residential units or more) – including mixed use developments – to include a minimum of 20% of residential units dedicated for affordable housing.

Two planning board members were absent, so no vote was taken on whether to recommend the amendment to the Town Council and the public workshop was continued to the planning board’s May meeting. (They will meet on Wednesday, April 12 but will not discuss inclusionary zoning.) None of the planning board members could remember which of them was actually on the subcommittee that drafted the ordinance.

What the inclusionary zoning proposal would offer to developers

Some of the key points in Middletown’s inclusionary zoning draft amendment :

  • The inclusionary units must be affordable to low-income households earning less than 80% of area median income (AMI) based on household size according to federal HUD guidelines.

  • All inclusionary units must be constructed as part of the proposed development. No offsite construction or other alternative means for meeting the inclusionary requirement will be permitted.

  • As required by the state law, compensation for the requirement to constructed inclusionary affordable units is provided in the form of a density bonus. As proposed, the bonus will allow for up to 150% of the number of residential units otherwise permitted.

  • For example, a developer with a 10-lot subdivision would be allowed to build 15 houses, and three of them would have to be “affordable” in the sense that their sale price would be indexed to an income level equaling 80% of Middletown’s AMI ($77,350 for a household of four).

  • In the event that a developer chooses to not take advantage of the density bonus, a waiver of certain fees such as development impact fees and plan review fees could be offered as compensation at the Planning Board’s discretion.

  • Subdivisions in residential zoning districts R-40 and R-60 would be exempt from the zoning amendment due to their rural nature and the fact that they do not have public water and public sewer hookups. Zones R-10, R-20, R-30 and LB would be subject to the new regulations.

  • All affordable units would be deed-restricted for 99 years.

How it fits with Middletown’s comprehensive plan

  • Wolanski noted state law 45-24-46.1 allows municipalities to adopt this type of requirement, which is intended to help the town reach the state’s mandated level of 10% affordable housing in every municipality.

  • Middletown’s Comprehensive Plan (housing goals on pp. 40-43)includes a goal to “increase the supply of workforce housing,” including by action H-III.A.1: “consider adopting an inclusionary zoning ordinance with a density bonus.”

  • The Comprehensive Plan’s goal H-V is “appropriately site affordable housing,” including action H-V.A.1 “Ensure affordable units are integrated with market-rate units in new developments whenever feasible, to avoid the concentration of (affordable) units in specific areas of town.”

What town officials are saying about the proposed zoning amendment

“The proposal here is that for any major subdivision with six or more lots, or any land development project with six or more residential units, that would be the threshold that would trigger compliance and participation in providing affordable housing units.” – Town Planner Ron Wolanski

“Having worked through two comprehensive plans, the housing element has always presented a problem…the only way to get there, from what I’ve seen, is intensification of zoning. That’s what it’s going to take to get affordable housing not only here but everywhere...and the town previously after the two comprehensive plans doesn’t seem to have an appetite for intensification of zoning in certain places” – planning board member Arthur Weber

“The builders are going to tell us whether they want this or not by either developing or not developing – the marketplace will decide.” – planning board member John Ciummo

“I still think we need to start somewhere, and (this) is a good start…the only other comment I’d make is I’d be curious to know if other communities that are similarly situated demographically have done this.” – Planning board vice chair William Nash

This article originally appeared on Newport Daily News: How Middletown RI is using zoning to increase affordable housing stock