Impacts of upzoning on Small Business
NOTICE: This site is committed to educating people about concerns around zoning that can harm people...
See below and several other pages on this site have info specific to the Acton 2024 Town Meeting votes to rezone Acton
We plan to keep the info below
for historical purposes, because it may be useful to people.
See below for the historical info.
The Zoning Articles will hurt small business
The Zoning Articles are put forth as a way to help business. We agree that it will help HUGE businesses, like developers.
But we believe that small businesses will be displaced.
Also there will be added taxes to businesses from the 'incentives' of allowing more residential development
The "goal" to incentivize commercial development by allowing more residential building is at a cost that is so high, it results in the opposite effect of reducing the tax impact on existing commercial and residential property owners.
Small businesses which rent will feel the biggest impact because when the zoning is changed to allow more condos on a parcel, the land owner will have a significant economic incentive to not renew business leases. Small business displacement is a certain impact of "upzoning".
Our fiscal analysts went parcel by parcel to examine the expected impact on each parcel of land.
Below see expected tax impact on taxpayers of the three proposed zoning changes, Art 11, 12 & 13.
Here is our illustration of one example of how small businesses will be displaced on River St.
Here is our illustration of one example of how small businesses will be displaced on River St.
We expect a similar impact for SAV Re-Zoning
The Town claims that the zoning will result in MORE commercial The Town has refused to release an "impact study" relative to how much of the proposed new tax revenue will be from commercial. So we will share our estimate, which indicates quite the contrary to the Town's claims:
