BPDA Board approves $244.7 million in development projects at May meeting

May 12, 2017

The Boston Planning & Development Agency’s (BPDA) board of directors approved 10 new development projects at the monthly board meeting this May. The developments represent $244.7 million dollars in combined investments and are estimated to yield 448 construction jobs and an expected 414 residential units, including 82 affordable units.

In addition to the approval of new development projects, the board also approved a request to authorize public bid advertisements in order to begin construction of Tenant Improvements for the Boston Public Library (BPL) – Chinatown Library Services Interim Location. The library services will be located at the China Trade Building, 2 Boylston Street, Boston, Massachusetts. This initiative was first announced in January of this year by Mayor Martin J. Walsh in his State of the City Speech. BPDA Capital Construction is working closely with BPL staff and BH+A, providing overall design coordination and project management of the build-out project.

New Development Projects

One Newcomb Place approval to bring 23 rental units to Roxbury

Live: 23 housing units, 20 market-rate rental units, three affordable units
Work: 40 construction jobs, $8.5 million investment
Connect: $10K in community benefits toward Grant A.M.E. Church improvements, Pine Street Inn, and YouthBuild Boston funding
Project Size: 24,655 square feet

The One Newcomb Place project, to be located at 1 Newcomb Street in Roxbury, is currently an underutilized lot located three blocks west of the Boston Medical Center. As proposed, the project will be made up of 23 rental units, consisting of 20 market-rate units and three Inclusionary Development Policy (IDP) units. There will be a mix of nine one-bedroom units, six two-bedroom units, six three-bedroom units and two three-bedroom duplex units.

As part of the project, the developer has chosen to donate $10,000 to local organizations, including:

• $5,000 to the Grant A. M. E. Church located at 1906 Washington Street
• $2,500 to the Pine Street Inn, Inc. located at 444 Harrison Avenue, and
• $2,500 to YouthBuild Boston, Inc. located at 27 Centre Street.

These community contributions will be made to the BPDA once building permits are issued by the City of Boston Inspectional Services Department (ISD).

1785 Columbus Avenue to increase non-profit and social service providers in Jackson Square area

Live: 48K square foot expansion of school to include social service job center and new cafe space
Work: 150 construction jobs, focused job-site internships, $40 million investment
Connect: 42 bike storage spaces, building wifi, LEED certifiable
Project Size: 139,200 square feet

The 1785 Columbus Avenue project aims to increase non-profit and social service providers in the Jackson Square area, while also allowing Horizons for Homeless Children to expand on its existing space. The project site is comprised of three parcels and contains two existing buildings, including a vacant warehouse previously used for storage, an auto body shop which will be relocated, and a surface parking lot.

The project is a 139,200 square-foot building that will include approximately 48,000 square feet on the second and third floors to be used by Horizons for Homeless Children as child care and administration space. The building will consist of another 87,500 square feet of office space for social service programs and 1,500 square feet of ground floor retail space. The site will also include 157 parking spaces on two levels, with 25 of these spaces replacing the existing surface parking lot at the project site. Approximately 97 secure, covered bicycle parking spaces will be provided for employees, as well as public bicycle racks for visitors.

The 1785 Columbus Avenue will include numerous benefits to the City of Boston, including but not limited to:

• Renovation of the pocket park across the street from the project at the corner of Amory Street and Dimock Street.
• Expansion of a school serving homeless children including expansion to an additional 50 children currently on the waiting list.
• Generation of new property taxes and Development Impact Project (DIP) linkage contributions.
• Creation of a local, social service job center focusing on helping the local community such as teachers, social workers, and doctors.

2451 Washington Street project to provide quality homeownership opportunities to the Roxbury community

Live: Six affordable housing units, homeownership opportunities in the Dudley Square area
Work: 25 construction jobs, $9 million investment
Connect: Quarter mile to Dudley Station, LEED Silver certifiable
Project Size: 22,630 square feet

The 2451 Washington Street project site abuts a four story subsidized multifamily housing that MPDC co-owns. As proposed, the project includes the construction of a four story building that will contain 16 units, 14 off-street covered parking spaces, two off-street open parking spaces, and a loading space.

In terms of community benefits, the project will:

• Provide quality homeownership opportunities to the Roxbury community across a diverse demographic,
• Provide quality urban design at a prominent location,
• Place a prominent vacant lot into productive, active residential use,
• Promote Transit Oriented Development including car-free transit options for residents, as the project is near the Dudley Station Bus Terminal and MBTA Orange Line.

125 Sumner Street to revitalize East Boston BHA housing, include addition of mixed-income housing

Live: 36 affordable units, 1,000 square feet of community gathering space, outdoor community garden
Work: 3,400 square feet of retail space, 233 construction jobs, $29 million investment
Connect: 50 bike storage spaces, LEED Silver certifiable, new physical and visual connection to the Harborwalk
Project Size: 60,670 square feet

125 Sumner Street project will be situated on two parcels of land located in and around 125 Sumner Street in the East Boston neighborhood of Boston. The two parcels of land collectively make up about 46,330 square feet and are currently occupied by four two-story residential buildings containing 20 affordable housing units, owned and operated by the Boston Housing Authority (BHA) as the Clippership Apartments.

The 125 Sumner Street project will replace the existing buildings with two three-story residential buildings containing 52 mixed-income residential units, commercial/retail space, a community gathering room, and approximately 17 off-street parking spaces. In total, both buildings will consist of approximately 60,670 gross square feet:

• Building 1 will contain 22 residential rental units, of which 20 will be direct BHA replacement units. These 22 residential rental units will consist of one one-bedroom unit, six two-bedroom units, 10 three-bedroom units, and five four-bedroom units. The same building will also offer approximately 3,400 square feet of commercial/retail space along Sumner Street, a 1,040 square foot community gathering room, a community patio, and publicly accessible secured storage for approximately 50 bicycles.
• Building 2 will contain 30 mixed-income residential homeownership units. The 30 residential homeownership units in Building 2 are anticipated to include six studio units, nine one-bedroom units, 12 two-bedroom units, and three three-bedroom units.

1457 Tremont to bring energy efficient residential building to Mission Hill

Live: Three green certifications, including: PassiveHaus, WELL, and LEED
Work: 26 construction jobs, new ground-floor retail spaces, Knights of Columbus community space
Connect: 500 feet to the Roxbury Crossing MBTA station, two resident-shared smart cars
Project Size: 36,444 square feet

The proposed 1457 Tremont project will be located on the corner of Tremont Street and Faxon Street and incorporates two parcels for a total lot size of 7,333 square feet. Currently, the front parcel contains an existing one-story building, home to the Roxbury Council Knights of Columbus, and the rear parcel is a vacant fenced in lot.

This project approval will yield a five-story, mixed-use building with 40 rental units, 5 IDP units, over 3,310 square feet of ground-floor commercial space, a 1,358 square-foot community space and private club space for the Knights of Columbus, and four parking spaces. As proposed, it is anticipated that the project will achieve PassiveHaus and LEED certifications, which strive to reach the highest level of energy efficiency and air-tightness of building envelope. The project will also seek certification from the International WELL Building Institute as part of their residential pilot program targeting occupant health and well-being.

The Residences at Walk Hill to bring residential, restaurant and retail floral businesses to Roslindale

Live: 12 on-site affordable units, $410K contribution towards affordable homeownership units in the area
Work: 89 construction jobs
Connect: Shuttle from the project site to the Forest Hills MBTA station, $50K contribution towards traffic calming, on-site bike storage and re-striping of bike lanes
Project Size: 87,631 square feet

The 289 Walk Hill Street project site is located at the corner of Walk Hill Street and Canterbury Street in Roslindale. The site is made up of four individual properties currently improved with retail floral businesses, a restaurant, and a residential structure.

The Residences at Walk Hill, LLC will consist of a 118,815 gross square foot, three and four story, 106 rental unit building with 126 parking spaces. The total development cost of the Proposed Project will be approximately $32 million, including approximately $7 million for land acquisition.

After working closely with the community, the proposed project original square footage, number of units, and height were decreased, and the setback along Walk Hill was increased.

Twelve units on-site will be affordable to households earning not more than 70 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI). In addition, the Proponent will contribute to the Inclusionary Development Policy (IDP) Special Revenue Fund for 2.05 units, or $410,000.

Public benefits from the project include, a shuttle from the Project Site to the Forest Hills MBTA Station, public way improvements along Walk Hill Street, signal timing adjustments on American Legion Highway intersections, beautifying the adjacent brook; and on-site bike storage and re-striping of the bicycle lanes on Walk Hill. A contribution of $50,000 to be used towards local Neighborhood Slow Streets or other street safety and calming measures, due in full within 30 days after the Proponent received a final Certificate of Occupancy from the Inspectional Services Department.

The Chandlery to bring 114 residential units to Dorchester Avenue

Live: 20 affordable housing units, 114 market-rate, new pedestrian plaza
Work: 6.5K square feet of retail space, rental and car sharing, $55 million investment
Connect: 50 bike storage spaces, LEED Silver certifiable, $15K contribution to Orton Field
Project Size: 87,631 square feet

The new six-story mixed-use building will include 114 residential units, 20 of which will be affordable. The unit mix consists of 20 studio units, 73 one-bedroom units and 21 two-bedroom units. Approximately 6,590 square feet of retail space will be constructed on the first two levels. This space will be occupied by Ultimate Self Defense Gym (currently located on the Project Site), a commercial automobile rental company, and a community-oriented use such as a restaurant. The community-oriented restaurant use and local business are consistent with the PLAN: South Boston Dorchester Avenue’s goals to have more amenities and support local businesses in the neighborhood. The Proposed Project provides easy access to several MBTA subway stations and bus lines. Up to 120 parking spaces will be provided in a below-grade parking garage that will utilize an automated parking system. A portion of the parking will be reserved for Enterprise Car Rental and its car sharing program, which will be available to both residents of the Proposed Project and the public. The Proposed Project also includes approximately 12,400 square feet of multi-level private and public open space, with a sunny courtyard acting as the centerpiece. The Proposed Project will be designed, constructed, and managed to be LEED Silver certifiable. The total development cost for the Proposed Project is approximately $55,000,000.

The developer will contribute $15,000 to the City of Boston's Parks and Recreation Department Fund for Parks upon the issuance of the building permit for the Proposed Project to be used for landscaping, benches and maintenance of Orton Field in the South Boston neighborhood.

Fifteen of the 114 residential rental units will be to be made affordable to households earning not more than 70 percent of the AMI. In addition, under the PLAN: South Boston/Dorchester Avenue density bonus program, the Proponent has agreed to provide five additional units, to be made affordable to households earning not more than 120 percent of AMI.

17 Residential units coming to 5205 Washington Street in West Roxbury

Live: 17 residential units
Work: 17 construction jobs, 9 indirect jobs
Connect: 26 parking spaces
Project Size: 21,800 square feet

The project will construct a four-story, 21,800 gross square foot residential rental building containing 17 residential units and 26 parking spaces. The total development cost will be approximately $3,000,000. Presently, the parcel has a one-story building housing an automotive use, along with an adjacent parking lot. The proposed project does not require any zoning variances.

735 Truman Highway to renovate former nursing home, create 46 rental units

Live: 6 on-site affordable units, 46 unit restoration of the Parkwell Nursing Home
Work: 26 construction jobs,
Connect: Walking distance to Fairmont MBTA station
Project Size: 49,805 square feet

The project will renovate the former three story, 49,805 gross square foot assisted living and nursing home facility into a residential development with 46 rental units. The estimated total development cost is approximately $6,000,000. Six units within the project will be made affordable to households earning not more than 70 percent of the AMI.

The developer will work with car sharing companies to provide two shared car parking spaces within the proposed project. The project is located within walking distance from the Fairmont MBTA station.

Wentworth Multipurpose Academic Building to support engineering and innovations programs

Live: 2 new pedestrian plazas
Work: 200 construction jobs, 8 permanent jobs
Connect: 12 new scholarships, STEM program for girls, welding certification
Project Size: 69,000 square feet

The Wentworth Multipurpose Academic Building will replace the Center of Engineering and Technology at 555 Parker Street in Wentworth Institute of Technology’s Institutional Master Plan (IMP) which was approved by the BPDA Board in 2010. The new academic building with a height of approximately 64.5 feet and a size of approximately 69,000 gross square feet will be located on the Wentworth campus where tennis courts are currently located. The project will contain laboratories, student learning and group meeting space, offices, and support/storage space on floors two through four, and a first-floor maker space, manufacturing, and gathering space intended to invite the Wentworth community to experience first-hand a rotating presentation of Wentworth’s engineering capabilities and teachings. The project will accommodate Wentworth’s transition from providing engineering technology programs to engineering and innovation programs, such as a new biological engineering program.

The project will activate the street edge along Parker Street, create two pedestrian plaza areas on Parker Street and Pike frontages, widen the the entrance to the Pedestrian Pike and will be LEED Silver certifiable including green building technology.

In addition, the project will add eight new scholarships for Girls’ Summer Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) program, expand the Boston Pipeline program to Madison Park High School, create four new scholarships for the welding certification program and add three new projects to the Wentworth sponsored Co+Build program.