12/2 Newsletter

Happy snow day! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and able to spend time with family. My wife and I celebrated with family the weekend before Thanksgiving day and are still digging out of a mountain of leftovers!

The first week of December represents a sprint to the end of the year for us at Backyard ADUs. We are racing to break ground on our first project in Easthampton before the ground freezes and to generate family conversations about the multi-generation living. We think conversations about backyard homes for aging parents or for downsizing will be more fun than theorizing about what happens post impeachment hearings.

11/4 – 12/2 News

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We Got Approval!!!

Our second ZBA hearing was night and day to the first one thanks to everyone that answered our and the homeowner's calls for support! The ZBA meeting was full of supporters of ADUs and there was palpable excitement about what they can do for our cities. You can watch the hearing here.

Congrats to Sarah Hunter, Chandra Linnell and Ramona Kallem!

Easthampton MA Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA)

Mayher St Project Update:

We are racing to dig the foundation hole and utility trenches before the ground freezes too deep! Even with today's snow, we hope to dig in the next two weeks and schedule delivery of the home for early February.

The Easthampton Water Department beat us to the punch and replaced the street side of the water connection. The piping was old galvanized steel and was at the end of its useful life.

Replacing the water service line at Mayher St project.

Interview with the 413Mom

Valerie Smart (aka 413 Mom) interviewed Sarah, Chandra, and Ramona about why they decided to build a backyard home. The article is a wonderful read, and provides a great case for the backyard home movement.

Read the article here: https://www.the413mom.com

12/4 Easthampton Downsizing Forum

We hit 100 registrations before Thanksgiving and opened a waiting list in attempts to accommodate more people on Wednesday and to start planning the a future session.

The event will kick off with short presentations about retirement communities and rules for backyard homes before transitioning to a panel discussion and live Q&A. We will be joined by John O'Leary and Becky Basch from the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission. Stephanie Kelley of Easthampton Neighbors will moderate the discussion!

Downsizing forum at Easthampton Council on Aging

The Gazette Published Our Op-Ed

We wrote a brief letter to the editor to help raise awareness about rules for backyard homes and some of the state-sponsored financing options. The Hampshire Daily Gazette published the letter last week and you can read it here.

New Cities Added to Our ADU Regulations List:

Chesterfield joined our list of cities/town that allows Backyard Tiny Homes!

And, finally who wouldn't want The Spruce in their backyard? Get the floor plans