In September of 2022, the City Manager’s office put forth a proposal for the first time in 20 years to adopt an “inclusionary zoning” (IZ) policy to amend the Worcester Zoning Ordinance, for new housing built in the city. If adopted, the amendment would require that developers set aside a certain percentage of their otherwise market-rate dwelling units for those households earning under a certain threshold of income. Adopting this policy would include Worcester with the 140 communities across Massachusetts with some form of inclusionary zoning. According to the “Grounded Solutions Network,” Massachusetts is third after New Jersey and California for number of jurisdictions with IZ policies.

Research in the Public Interest Housing affordability in Worcester is increasingly a topic of concern. Nearly 58% of occupied housing units in the city are renter-occupied. According to the Census Bureau’s 2020 American Community Survey, just over 50% of renter-occupied units in Worcester are cost burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their monthly household income on housing costs. In 2010, it was 47.7%. Compare this to owner-occupied units, 28.5% of which are cost-burdened, a decrease from 39.1% over the same time period.

The proposed IZ policy would require that a percentage of new dwelling units are reserved for households at 60-80% Area Median Income (AMI). AMI is a statistical measure created by the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, based on incomes not only in Worcester but in many of the surrounding communities. The IZ policy would apply to both new “for-rent” and “for-sale” developments. Affordable “for-rent” units cannot charge more than 30% of a household’s gross income for rent, nor more than the Fair Market Rent (FMR) for the unit type. Affordable “for-sale” units cannot exceed the median sales price for the property type “at the time of sale published by the Massachusetts Multiple Listing Service.”

The end of the report contains a Summary and Flowchart of the City’s Zoning proposal.