New zoning rules took effect in Weymouth’s Jackson Square village center that allow taller buildings to accommodate denser commercial and residential development.
The zoning creates an overlay zone and divides Jackson Square into three districts where buildings could contain both residences and retail shops and be three to four stories high. The buildings could go up another story, though, if the developer promised that 10 percent of any residential space would be reserved for people that meet the state guidelines for affordable housing.
Eric Schneider, Weymouth principal planner, said new zoning was needed to encourage development in a village center where buildings were beginning to deteriorate, and the number of businesses was dwindling. He said the new zoning also gives Weymouth a chance to create more open space along the herring run in Jackson Square.
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The zoning change also was in response to the state law going into effect next year that requires communities to allow multifamily buildings within a half-mile of a commuter rail station, Schneider said. The East Weymouth stop of the Greenbush commuter rail line is in Jackson Square.
Johanna Seltz can be reached at seltzjohanna@gmail.com.