Mayor and City Council Agree to Restart Zoning Project

At the December 2, 2025 Medford City Council meeting, the Mayor and City Council agreed on a plan to restart the City’s Zoning Updates Project. The City will sign an extension and provide additional resources to advance key zoning priorities in Medford Square, Tufts and Boston Ave between now and May 2026. The City will solicit new proposals starting in February/March for work on zoning updates between May 2026 and June 2028 (one year extension if not complete). 

The Mayor, in collaboration with the Office of Planning, Development and Sustainability, will appropriate funding to sign a contract extension with Innes Land Group to perform work in the following areas from December 2025 to May 2026: 

• Full Medford Square zoning update 
• Tufts Institutional Zone and Boston Ave 
• Clean up areas of our zoning in accordance with the needs of the Building Commissioner and the Office of Planning, Development and Sustainability 
• Communications and community engagement support

The Mayor will additionally request that the City Council and Community Development Board hold a joint public hearing in January to discuss the rezoning proposal for Medford Square and West Medford Square that is currently sitting in the Community Development Board. 

Following this, a Request for Proposals for a new contract will be released to bidders in February/March, and a proposal will be selected in April to begin work in May 2026 and continue through June 2028. This RFP will include: 

• Main Street and Broadway 
• The initiation of a parking study through the Office of Planning, Development and Sustainability 
• Wellington/Mystic Valley Parkway, after completion of the Wellington Transformation Study 
• West Medford Square, after completion of the Medford Economic Assessment & SWOT analysis
• Mystic Ave review after the Tufts UEP Field Project proposal for Reimagining the Mystic Avenue Corridor 
• Residential (including Accessory Dwelling Unit(s) and Historic Conversion), starting with the less-dense residential zoning map that the city council approved in March 2025 as a starting point, which could be adjusted based on neighborhood input. The map released by the CD Board from May 2025 will not be the starting point. 
• Parking will take place at the same time as residential zoning 
• Transportation Demand Management (TDM) review 
• Inclusionary Zoning Updates and Affordable Housing Overlay 

Other agreements include: 

• An RFP and additional funds for a public relations consultant to engage in more robust community engagement will also be appropriated, including a professionally designed standalone zoning website; support for neighborhood meetings; and better outreach into the community ahead of zoning public meetings via mailers, text messages, robocalls, and social media. The Council and Mayor will work together on whether or not this should be a standalone RFP. 
• No new zoning amendments will be presented during July and August. 
• Department Heads will be consulted from the beginning on all of the above. 

At the December 2 City Council meeting, the City Council voted to rezone parts of the Salem and Park node from MX-2 to MX-1, following a September request from the Mayor.