Planning Board advances elimination of 10-year accessory apartment rule

LINCOLN — January 26, 2021 — Lincoln Planning Board moves to scrap 10-year wait on accessory apartments and cap them at 10 percent. The board reached consensus Jan. 26 to draft a bylaw amendment striking the requirement that a house be at least 10 years old before adding an accessory apartment, paired with a 30-day minimum lease term aimed at blocking Airbnb use and a 10 percent townwide cap. Planning Director Paula Vaughn reported 2,423 residential units and 64 permitted accessory apartments, with the town's Subsidized Housing Inventory at 13.99 percent and roughly 377 units of headroom above the state's 10 percent threshold. Co-Chair Gary Taylor, a longtime Lincoln landlord, said the existing rule blocks multigenerational arrangements and dismissed concerns about overuse: "I just don't see what people are afraid of." ZBA member David Hinken said he could recall only one or two denials in 10 years tied to the structure-age rule. A public hearing will follow in early March.