Adult Supervision Required: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts\u27s Reckless Adventures with Affordable Housing and the Anti-Snob Zoning Act

Recognizing that municipalities are inherently selfish and that they would intentionally exclude certain land uses and structures, the majority of states have required that their cities and towns plan for and accommodate undesirable land uses within their borders. The planned incorporation of undesirable and desirable land uses is a fundamental attribute of states that require and enforce the preparation of coordinated and rationally developed comprehensive plans. This Article discusses the approach taken in Massachusetts—a non plan state—and its myopic and regressive mechanism for compelling the construction of affordable housing. The Article suggests that the Massachusetts example is a failure of law and policy and that the statute, both abusive and abused, must be repealed. In its stead, Massachusetts must look to the success of numerous other states that have incorporated the development of affordable housing—and other land uses—within a rationally developed, and legally meaningful, comprehensive plan