Boston – The Boston Planning & Development Agency (BPDA) board of directors recently approved five new development projects that will create 254 residential units and support approximately 1,651 construction jobs and 4,552 permanent jobs.
The 2 Hillsboro Street project will convert what is currently vacant land into 21 new income-restricted homeownership units in the Upham’s Corner neighborhood of Dorchester, 18 of which will be specifically designated for artists as live/work units. It will include shared workspace and exhibit space and will be in close proximity to public transportation. The project will also include public realm improvements and is targeting passive house and LEED certification.
What is currently an 11-story office building at 85 Devonshire Street in Downtown Boston will be converted into housing, retaining the ground floor retail space. The building will include 95 units, 19 of which will be income-restricted. The Downtown Conversion Program was created to encourage new use of underutilized office space and respond to the city’s housing crisis. This project will advance key recommendations of both the 2022 Downtown Revitalization Report and PLAN: Downtown.
115-121 Boston Street
Located in Dorchester, the 115-121 Boston Street project will build a new 5-story, mixed-use development including 90 compact living units, 15 of which will be income-restricted. The building will offer amenities for residents including a meeting and recreation room and a fitness center on the ground floor. This project will improve the surrounding public realm including a new public park, better connections for pedestrians, and more than 20 new trees on site.
The project at 749-759 Dudley Street and 2 Virginia Street will replace two commercial buildings with a new mixed-use, multi-family development in Dorchester. The development will provide ground floor retail and 48 residential units, which will be a mix of studios, one-, two-, and three-bedrooms. Of those, six units will be income-restricted. The project will include public realm improvements, and will be in close proximity to public transportation.
749-759 Dudley Street
The CORE on the DOT Phase 1b, 505 Dorchester Avenue, 65 Ellery Street, and 75 Ellery Street project is part of the On the Dot Planned Development Area Master Plan which was approved by the BPDA board in October of 2023. This phase will construct three new commercial office, research and development, and lab buildings with ground floor retail space and bicycle parking. 505 Dorchester Avenue will be 12 stories; 65 Ellery Street and 75 Ellery Street will each be 13 stories. The project will also include more than an acre of public open space, as well as a new street network, transportation improvements, and pedestrian safety improvements.
The board also approved new Squares + Streets zoning districts in Mattapan, and awarded tentative designation to Related Beal and DREAM Development for the redevelopment of the Boston Water and Sewer Commission (BWSC) Lots located in Roxbury.
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The BPDA board approved a petition to the Zoning Commission to amend the zoning code to map Squares + Streets districts in Mattapan. Mattapan is the first neighborhood in the City where Squares + Streets zoning districts will be mapped. This new zoning in Mattapan is the implementation of recommendations from PLAN: Mattapan, and additional engagement with the community over the last several months. Squares + Streets Zoning Districts vary in their use allowances, dimensional regulations, and density. The districts in Mattapan are mapped to respond to existing context and goals identified in PLAN: Mattapan. The geographic areas proposed to be amended, which provide unique and different amenities and resources to the Mattapan community, include Mattapan Square, Blue Hill Avenue, the Morton Street Commuter Rail Station, and the intersection of Cummins Highway and Greenfield Street.
The board also approved a demonstration project plan that will allow the agency to formally acquire the site at 290 North Beacon Street in Allston-Brighton from the owner, IQHQ, to be redeveloped for permanently affordable arts and culture space and other compatible uses.
Additionally, the board awarded final designation status to 22 Drydock, LLC, a joint venture between Related Beal, Boston Real Estate Investment Fund (BREIF) and Kavanaugh Advisory Group, to redevelop the land at 20 and 22 Drydock Avenue in the Raymond L. Flynn Marine Park (RLFMP) into a new life science space with millions of dollars in public benefits.
In addition to these projects, the board approved:
- An update to a previously approved project at the Stanhope Hotel to add another floor to the building.
- An update to a previously approved project at 267 Old Colony Avenue to change the programming from rental units to homeownership units.
- An update to a previously approved project at 575 Albany Street to change the programming from rental units to homeownership units.
- The disbursement of $125,000 to the University of Massachusetts Boston’s Department of Urban Planning in support of the 2024 Summer Program Expanding Boston’s Pipeline for Youth of Color in Urban Planning.
