Land Use & Zoning
Massachusetts zoning law generally prohibits exclusionary zoning practices that would:
AAllow multi-family housing in all zones
BPrevent the development of affordable housing by setting unreasonably large minimum lot sizes or other restrictions✓ Correct
CPermit commercial uses in residential zones
DEliminate parking requirements
Explanation
Exclusionary zoning—using land use regulations to prevent the development of affordable or multi-family housing—can be challenged under Chapter 40B and fair housing laws. Massachusetts courts and statutes push back against exclusionary practices.
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Key Terms to Know
Zoning
Local government regulations that control land use by dividing areas into zones specifying permitted uses, building sizes, and densities.
VarianceOfficial permission to use land in a way that does not conform to the applicable zoning ordinance, granted by a zoning board when strict enforcement would cause undue hardship.
Eminent DomainThe power of government to take private property for public use, with the requirement to pay the owner just compensation.
Adverse PossessionA doctrine by which a person can gain legal title to another's land by openly, continuously, and adversely occupying it for a statutory period.
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