Town of Arlington, Fair Housing Action Plan (July 2021)

Citation: Town of Arlington, Fair Housing Action Plan (July 2021)
Jurisdiction: Arlington (municipal)
Source: Official source
Original Source: https://www.arlingtonma.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/57214/637641171662530000 ↗

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annual meetings, committees of Town Meeting members convene to discuss specific topics at additional meetings
throughout the year and report their findings to the full Town Meeting.
Assessment: The structure of Town Meeting, its size, and its schedule create a form of representative democracy
that demands participation from a relatively wide segment of Arlingtonians. However, these attributes can also
stymie efforts to pass legislation that is responsive to the housing challenges facing the community. The decision-
making power resides with those who already live in town, who are not obligated to take into account the needs
of those who might want to live in town but are unable to. It precludes the participation of those who are unable
to attend multiple consecutive evening meetings due to childcare, work, or other obligations. These challenges are
inherent in many forms of local democracy, but they likely serve as an impediment to fair housing reform.
Altering this fundamental structure of local government would require significant debate locally and potentially
state-level action. Despite these barriers, the Town should explore reforms that expand the ability to participate.
These could include simple changes to the schedule, such as making meetings more frequent but less time-
consuming, or more complex changes like allowing virtual participation through hybrid digital and in-person
meetings and digital voting systems.
Town Meeting can also address fair housing concerns by incorporating a fair housing review for each item on the
Town Meeting warrant. Equity Impact Assessments (EIAs) are an increasingly popular tool for assessing legislation
on its equity impactions. EIAs are often performed by municipal staff or an independent commission. Arlington
could use an EIA