Micro-apartments are gaining acceptance in nearby Boston and in places such as San Francisco and New York, but Weymouth, Mass., officials and neighbors were not receptive to a proposal for tiny dwellings this summer.
“This is Weymouth, not Boston,” said the owner of a hair salon near the proposed apartment project. She opposed the Weymouth micro-unit plan, as did the East Weymouth Neighborhood Association and two town councilors.
Most neighbors viewed the proposal as a rooming house because of the planned 19 units of about 300 sf, and were worried about added traffic in an already congested area.
“Generally the comments from the public were not positive,” Weymouth town planner Abby McCabe told the Boston Globe. The town’s Board of Zoning Appeals was concerned that the overall project was too large for the site, but took no position on the micro-unit aspect of it, McCabe said.
The developer has decided to scrap the concept for 15 more conventionally sized, but still small, units—most ranging from 430 sf to 460 sf. This is an indication that tiny apartments might find an inhospitable reception outside of the large urban hubs that have embraced them as affordable options for young professionals.
Related Stories
| Jul 5, 2012
Continued tax breaks necessary for widespread adoption of net zero buildings
Tax breaks passed by the U.S. government to encourage construction of green buildings are set to expire in 2012 and 2013.
| Jun 28, 2012
Six buildings now recognized under Living Building Challenge
The Living Building Challenge (LBC), a green ratings system for design and construction that judges a building based on its actual performance, not just its projected performance at the design stage, has recognized six buildings to date.
| Jun 28, 2012
Label for building products will have ‘global warming number’
The director of the 2030 Challenge for Products says that the organization is aiming to place a label on building products that will list what’s in it, and how much embodied carbon each product represents.
| Jun 28, 2012
Top building material executive urges building resilience in sustainability standards
A meeting of 1,000 business executives at the recent Rio+20 environmental conference featured a passionate plea to include building resilience in efforts to boost sustainability.
| Jun 28, 2012
Following spate of skyscraper balcony glass panel breakages, Ontario adopts code change
Ontario's housing minister announced new building code rules to help prevent glass panels from breaking off high-rise balconies during hot weather.
| Jun 28, 2012
Factory worker deaths in Italy raise questions on building codes after earthquakes
Italian officials are questioning seismic building standards and inspection procedures in the aftermath of two damaging earthquakes.
| Jun 21, 2012
Brazilian engineering/construction firm Odebrecht sues Florida over ban on companies doing business in Cuba
Odebrecht Construction Inc., a Brazilian engineering and construction company, is suing the State of Florida over a new law that bans governments from hiring companies with business ties to Cuba.
| Jun 21, 2012
String of shattered glass balcony panels prompts call for code reform in Ontario
Since last summer, glass balconies have shattered at 13 different buildings in Toronto.
