The City of Somerville's Key Systems Indicators

Housing

Somerville's stock of affordable housing units has increased by nearly 600 since 2002. These units represent about 10% of the City's housing stock. In SomerVision, residents set a goal of adding 1,200 affordable units between 2010 and 2030.

Summary

Housing Units in the City

33,720

Designated Affordable

3,430

SomerVision goal for new housing:

6,000

Permanently Affordable:

1,200 (20%)

Demographics

Births in Somerville are trending upward, increasing from a low of 849 in 2004 (or 11 births per 1,000 residents) to 974 (or 12.9 births per 1,000 residents) a decade later. The oppposite is true statewide, where the birthrate has steadily decreased since 1998. As a result, the Somerville birth rate has consistently exceeded the Massachusetts rate since 2007.



The proportion of Somerville's population between the ages of 20 and 34 is remarkably large, nearly 43%, which is more than double the equivalent proportion statewide. In fact, Somerville has the second largest concentration of 25- to 34-year-olds in the country behind Hoboken, NJ.



Somerville is an incredibly diverse city. A quarter of the population was born outside of the United States, and our residents speak 35 languages at home.



There is also diversity in family structure in Somerville: the City has the 6th largest concentration of same-sex couple households in the country.

Collision Safety

Safety on the streets of Somerville is a priority for both the City and its residents. The following maps shows the location of collisions involving pedestrians and cyclists from 2010 through August of 2015. A larger dot, which indicates an intersection with more crashes than others, is usually indicative of more activity at that intersection. The City takes this data seriously, and strives to eliminate as many safety hazards as possible.

Pedestrians

Cyclists