2024 SAG Award Winners

Massachusetts Housing Partnership

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Project Goal

In 2021, MA enacted the MBTA Communities Law, requiring 177 municipalities in Greater Boston to have a transit-oriented zoning district where multifamily housing is allowed as of right. Compliance is determined through geospatial calculations and complex analytical processes. The state executive housing office tasked the Center for Housing Data at MHP with developing a “compliance model” for official use. We set out to provide pre-tabulated GIS files and a model that estimates compliance metrics, with a handbook for conducting required calculations.

We also wanted to assemble resources to facilitate good planning aiming beyond basic compliance. This included investigating standard GIS software options as well as a custom map explorer for geospatial analysis of existing housing patterns. The team wanted this website (Residensity) to be interactive and engaging, allowing users to explore neighborhoods and assess how residential density and multifamily housing shape the places we lov
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Business Problem Solved

First, the “compliance model” we developed is used by the 177 municipalities subject to the law to measure zoning districts relative to requirements such as min. land area and zoned capacity. The model includes geospatial analysis that removes environmental and developmental constraints in batch for every parcel in each community. The handbook includes GIS methodology for communities and consultants to make calculations.

Second, our team created Residensity, an interactive map explorer website that allows users to view, measure, and analyze the quantity and density of housing units on the parcel & neighborhood level.

Third, working with our regional Esri office, we purchased several ArcGIS Urban licenses and have piloted the translation of compliance model results into Urban. We now offer licenses at no cost to professionals looking to leverage the tool’s 3D modeling capabilities when planning for and visualizing the impacts of proposed zoning.

Technology Implemented

Our team used ArcGIS Pro & Model Builder to generate pre-calculated layers utilized by communities for zoning analysis. The process included processing and measuring intersections between individual tax parcels and land constraints as well as intersections with incompatible use types.

Residensity relies on ArcGIS Pro and the ArcGIS bridge with R. We conducted a large spatial join to consolidate disparate information sources, then used R to implement complex analysis and apply a series of ordered decision rules. We now host the constructed data set on ArcGIS Online. We commissioned a custom widget to process and analyze the data within the user interface. We have an automated update process that heavily leverages the ArcGIS R bridge and the AGOL structure to ensure quick and seamless quarterly updates.

ArcGIS Urban is being leveraged by communities and consultants exploring and visualizing the potential impacts of new zoning.

Development Team Biography

Tom Hopper – Director, Center for Housing Data @ MHP. Tom designs and oversees the team’s projects and research. He led development & deployment of the compliance model and designed the methodology for Residensity.

Matija Jankovic – Senior Research Analyst, Center for Housing Data @ MHP. Matija provides research and analytical support at CHD. Matija supported the compliance model development and led the technical design and deployment of Residensity.

Ellen Marya – Research Manager, Center for Housing Data at MHP. Ellen provides structure to analytical projects and procedures. Ellen is responsible for managing our research agenda and conducting research building off our Residensity data set.

Callie Clark – Director of Policy and Communications, MHP. Callie ensures proper and consistent messaging around the team’s work and makes connections to the press and key external audiences that elevate work such as the compliance model and Residensity.