And that's very impressive, given that the majority of Brookline - the part farther from the urban core - is quite suburban. The part of brookline near Coolidge Corner is very dense, with many mid rise buildings. Brookline, for its size, has a lot of affordable housing options as well as a very good town assistance program for first time buyers before a certain income bracket. It also has much more than it's share of mental health group homes. It gets tiresome hearing sour grapes people rant about brooklines snobbery on here, and expectations that it somehow "owes" something that isn't being given. Yes, itv a wealthy town overall and more and more so, and there is some snobbery that comes along with that. That being said, most people I know who visit Brookline immediately love it for its unique character and pleasant blend of urban and low density. Developments like this are exactly what draw people to the area.
Another thing: if you live in Brookline, your kids usually get to walk to school. As the population increases, that is changing., since the local elementary schools can't necessarily accommodate all of the local children. The town is going to have to build another school, and soon. But as it stands right now every time there is another large development, that directly affects the size and quality of public education which is probably the biggest single reason that families move to this town. It also affects what elementary school the existing people on a certain street can send their kids to, and whether or not the trip to school is a bus ride or a short walk. That affects property values since not all schools are created equal and the ability to walk your kid to school, a good school, is a huge, huge plus for most people.. Do you think I'm kidding? The development at Hancock Village, if built, would force many local people in South Brookline to have to have their kids bussed over to Heath.
I also get annoyed by many of the commenters on here who I am pretty sure don't have children of their own, nor do they own property, casting huge aspersions without actually having put much thought into seeing things from other people's perspective (and full disclosure: I don't live in Brookline anymore, I support dense development, don't own and don't have kids). There is a lot more subtlety to these questions then just kicking and screaming about snobbery and wanting to bulldoze and force people you resent for no good reason to accept ugly tall buildings in the wrong locations.
