FRAMINGHAM - Members of the Framingham City Council’s Planning and Zoning Subcommittee met on Monday, July 29, to hear an update on the city’s plan to comply with the MBTA Communities Act.

Enacted into law back in 2021, the MBTA Communities Act is a state mandate requiring municipalities with MBTA service—like trains and buses—to provide at least one multi-family housing district as of right within its zoning. The law does not give the green light for the construction of housing to be carried out; it just paves the way for the zoning for housing to be offered by cities and towns.

As it currently stands, Framingham is in line with the MBTA Communities Act. The city could fall out of compliance by the end of the year—leaving Framingham at risk of losing state funding for a variety of causes—though local officials have expressed confidence that a plan can be finalized by the end of 2024.

Framingham’s Director of Planning and Community Development Sarkis Sarkisian detailed ideas of utilizing the Waverly Street area to members City Council’s subcommittee, a section of the city that has been in focus throughout this process.

Sarkisian also reiterated that other local areas could be used to meet the MBTA’s mandates. Shoppers World, a portion of the Speen Street corridor, and the 9-90 area—the latter of which has plenty of spaces that are not currently being utilized, according to local officials—were all brought up as possible places to provide the zoning required by the state.

Sarkisian explained that these locations elsewhere in Framingham were brought up after downtown stakeholders advocated for spreading the necessary housing districts outside of that area. He noted that just 40% of the district is required to be placed around the city’s Commuter Rail station downtown. Part of the appeal of using those non-downtown spaces, Sarkisian said, is the ability to leverage public transportation resources outside of the MBTA’s services—such as the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority and the Logan Express shuttle from Massport.

With that, though, Sarkisian added that the state law dictates that the zoning has to permit around 4,300 units to be built, meaning that zoning for around 700 additional units has to be found outside of downtown Framingham.

“My recommendation would be to look at these two or three sites (at Shoppers World, on Speen Street, or in the 9-90 area) and put that density at these locations, and take pressure off of the downtown,” Sarkisian told City Council members on Monday.

City officials are also investigating how they could potentially integrate mixed use buildings—bringing retail spaces and residential units together—to create a zoning solution. Sarkisian said that the owners of Shoppers World, Urban Edge Properties, have expressed an interest in strategies such as these.

Planning and Zoning Subcommittee member and City Council Chair Phil Ottaviani also praised the potential for creative mixed use proposals outlined on Monday, especially if they can alleviate pressure from downtown Framingham.

“We need to be as competitive as possible and attract businesses, economic development…and create some housing around it,” Ottaviani said on Monday.

City officials stressed the importance of keeping local stakeholders updated during the process of staying in line with the MBTA Communities Act. Members of the City Council pitched the idea of holding neighborhood meetings to keep the community up to date on the matter.