121 / Delaying housing, by design / with Jonathan Berk

<p><strong>Jonathan Berk</strong> — founder of Re:Main — is in good traffic this week from Salem, Massachusetts for a survey of <em>Delayed by Design</em>, a new report published by Boston Indicators. The work looks at how discretionary permitting keeps stalling middle housing in Massachusetts, even on sites where zoning already allows it. Re:Main partners with municipalities, property owners, small developers, and aligned capital to get missing middle housing built in walkable neighborhoods, which matters because duplexes, triplexes, and small apartment buildings are the projects that carry the most uncertainty, the most politics, and the least room for delay.</p><p>We also touch on: Going from a personal injury attorney to an urbanist. The housing system as an onion. Why most of New England couldn't be built today. Overeducated NIMBYism and loading every pet issue onto housing. Red-state housing reforms and the Massachusetts GOP. Financing in gateway cities. Historic preservationists who skipped the parking reform fight. Salem in October, and why parking for the peak would ruin the place. A ferry ride home with a cold beer.</p><p><br /></p><p><strong>Timeline:</strong></p><p>0:00 Jonathan Berk is in good traffic.</p><p>2:28 Law to urbanism by way of Jane Jacobs, Jeff Speck, Strong Towns.</p><p>9:47 Building Re:Main, and why our housing system is an onion.</p><p>12:43 Misinformation, MBTA Communities, and the school-enrollment numbers for new housing.</p><p>15:18 Salem turns 400, and why most of New England couldn't be built under today's zoning.</p><p>16:49 Highly educated NIMBYism and asking housing to solve every problem.</p><p>22:51 Delayed by Design: Newton case studies, where permitting took longer than construction.</p><p>30:34 Montana, Texas, and red-state reforms vs. the Massachusetts Republican Party.</p><p>40:11 The two-to-three-unit cliff in building codes and site plan review.</p><p>42:43 Financing small projects: gateway cities, HDIP, and the Memphis model.</p><p>48:52 Historic preservation, adaptive reuse, and the parking reform fight.</p><p>51:37 Salem in October: 1.4 million visitors and "do not drive to Salem."</p><p>57:20 Key takeaways: permitting certainty, and don't hate the player, hate the game.</p><p>59:38 Where to find Jonathan, and the best commute he's ever had.</p><p><br /></p><p><strong>Further context:</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.bostonindicators.org/reports/report-detail-pages/2026/september/delayed-by-design" target