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Accessory dwelling units could change housing landscape in Mass. under new law

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Accessory dwelling units could change housing landscape in Mass. under new law


It felt like forever for Cara Judd to find her forever home after she sold her small condo during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I got really excited until I started looking around and was devastated by what my options were,” Judd said. “I have a really good job, I had been saving money for a while, it is just me, so my own money I thought was going to go a lot further and when it didn’t, I didn’t know what to do with myself.”

After months of searching, and knowing she wanted to be near her parents in West Newbury, Massachusetts, they had an idea: What if Judd built an accessory dwelling unit on the back of their home?

Judd fell in love with the idea.

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“There are a lot of people that are probably like me that thought their money would go a little bit further, and there are just not a lot of options that are out there,” she added.

West Newbury allows ADUs, as they are called, and thanks to a new state law, many more cities and towns across Massachusetts will, as well.

Gov. Maura Healey signed the Affordable Housing Act into law last month.

The largest housing bill in Massachusetts history, the Affordable Homes Act, was signed into law by Gov. Maura Healey. Here’s how it’s meant to help ease the state’s housing crunch.

“It creates housing at no cost to the state, and it also creates opportunities in a lot of cities and towns,” said Secretary Edward Augustus of the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities.

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Augustus and the commonwealth estimate the Affordable Housing Act will lead to 8,000-10,000 ADUs in the next five years.

“Taking some of the pressure off our housing market, creating more supply, which hopefully loosens up and hopefully creates some competition in that space,” Augustus said. “Cities and towns have questions, understandably so, so we are working closely with them on what the responsibilities of the town is to comply with this ordinance, and ways we can support them as they support homeowners who make this decision.”

Chris Lee started Backyard ADUs four-and-a-half years ago and says interest has exploded in the last month.

“We have just seen an explosion in demand, we are doing everything we can to keep up,” Lee said. “They are saying it is this, or nothing, there is not affordable rentals out there, there is not affordable condos out there.”

He said people are intrigued by the size, cost and timeline.

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“It is absolutely skyrocketing, our inbound inquiries doubled last month,” Lee said.

Building a house can take 9-12 months. Most ADUs, which are assembled offsite and trucked in, can be built and finished in about 10 weeks, the company estimates.

The Massachusetts Association of Realtors also supports the new act.

“We are really starting to see momentum build behind the production of more housing,” said Justin Davidson, general counsel and director of government affairs for the Massachusetts Association of Realtors. “If we don’t build the housing we need to meet demand, we won’t have the state we all want to live and work in.”

Housing advocates say the Affordable Housing Act is a start, but more has to be done.

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“ADUs are a really important strategy to create more homes, more opportunities in communities,” said Jesse Kanson-Benanav, head of Abundant Housing Massachusetts. “It is bad out there, it is a really bad situation in Massachusetts.”

“We are not going to solve our housing crisis, we are not going to address this housing shortage with this ADU law alone, it is one really important tool in the tool kit,” he added. “We need to think of other strategies to build more homes, to make homes more affordable and to help keep people housed.”

Judd is ready to move in to hers, knowing big things can come in small packages.



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Massachusetts

Massachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks

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Massachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks




Massachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks – CBS Boston

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Poya Sohrabi hasn’t heard from his family since they took shelter from attacks in Tehran. WBZ-TV’s Mike Sullivan reports.

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How will the Iran war impact gas prices in Massachusetts?

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How will the Iran war impact gas prices in Massachusetts?


With a widening conflict in the Middle East after the American and Israeli attack on Iran Saturday, global markets are bracing for a shakeup in the energy supply chain.

So, here at home, what can consumers expect at the gas pump?

An increase in oil prices is almost always followed by an increase in gas prices. And the oil market has already reacted to the war. NBC News reported on Sunday that U.S. crude oil initially spiked more than 10%, while Brent, the international oil benchmark, rose as much as 13%.

Early Monday morning, reports were coming in of black smoke rising from the U.S. embassy in Kuwait City.

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While Iran’s oil reserves supply less than an estimated 5% of global production, the main concern is the Strait of Hormuz. This maritime passageway borders Iran at the bottleneck of the Persian Gulf, and more than 20% of the world’s oil passes through. If Iran closes or restricts Hormuz, the oil market could face severe disruptions.

Gas prices rise about 2.5 cents for every dollar increase in crude oil prices. As of Sunday, U.S. crude oil prices had already increased by nearly $5 a barrel.

“I fully expect that by Monday night, you could credibly say that gas prices are being impacted by oil prices having gone up,” GasBuddy analyst Patrick De Haan told NBC News.

GasBuddy characterizes their expectations for price increases as “incremental” rather than “explosive”. The group said to anticipate a potential 10-15 cent increase over the next couple of weeks.

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Body camera video shows Massachusetts police officer save 78-year-old man from burning truck – East Idaho News

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Body camera video shows Massachusetts police officer save 78-year-old man from burning truck – East Idaho News


EASTON, Mass. (WBZ) — Police body camera video shows an Easton, Massachusetts, officer rescuing a 78-year-old Raynham man from a burning car on Friday morning.

A Mack dump truck was experiencing problems on the side of Turnpike Street just after 2 a.m. when a Ford pickup truck struck the back of it, according to police.

The pickup truck then became stuck under the dump truck, trapping the driver, Francis Leverone, inside. A Toyota Camry then hit the back of the pickup truck and caught fire, police said.

Easton police officer Dean Soucie arrived at the crash and saw that the two vehicles were on fire. Video shows Soucie rushing over before breaking the driver’s side window and then, with the help of the two witnesses, freeing Leverone from the pickup truck. Soucie said he was confused but conscious.

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“As I reached inside the vehicle, one of the passersby — he actually jumped into the cab of the truck, and he helped me free the individual,” Soucie said.

They then carried the driver to safety.

Leverone was taken to a nearby hospital before being transferred to a Boston hospital. He received serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

No one else was injured in the crash.

Dee Leverone told WBZ her husband is doing OK. “I’m just thankful for the people that got him out,” she said. “Very thankful.”

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After watching the police body-cam video on the news she said, “I was shocked, I was like ‘Oh my God!’ I just couldn’t believe it. His truck is like melted.”

She says she realized that something was wrong last night when her husband never made it home from work.

“I kept trying to call him and call him, and I finally got a hold of him at like 4:30 a.m., and he was at (Good Samaritan Hospital) and he told me he’s gotten in an accident,” Dee said.

She says he’s recovering at the Boston Medical Center and being treated for a dislocated hip.

“He’s a trooper,” Dee said. “He’s a strong man — and you know he’s 78, but you know he’s a toughie. He definitely is a toughie.”

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Soucie commended the help of the two witnesses and said that before he arrived at the crash, they had attempted to put out the flames with a fire extinguisher and removed a gasoline tank from the pickup truck before it could ignite.

“They jumped into action like it was nothing,” Soucie said. “Those two individuals were absolutely awesome.”

Easton Police Chief Keith Boone said that he is “extremely proud” of Soucie and the witnesses.

“He saved a life last night,” Chief Boone said. “He is an exemplary police officer and this is just one example. I think he’s a hero.”

Turnpike Street was closed for several hours following the crash. Easton Police are investigating.

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