North Adams Considering Adopting 40R Smart Growth Zoning

North Adams  is considering the benefits of adopting 40R zoning, a state law that would make it easier to redevelop vacant and underutilized buildings for housing and mixed development.

The state instituted so-called Smart Growth Zoning about 15 years ago to incentivize developers to largely utilize existing structures to create market-rate housing that also provided a percentage of affordable-housing units and space for retail or commerce.

Several Berkshire communities have adopted the zoning law, including most recently the town of Adams.

The 40R overlay would cover most of the downtown and the eastern gateway, designated as the downtown district and the mill district. More than a third of the district's 30 acres is classified as "underutilized," Feury said.

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