The Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) will host a community meeting Weds., Dec. 12 to “start the conversation” on the first draft of a S. Huntington Avenue “corridor plan,” BRA spokesperson Melina Schuler told the Gazette.
The meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the Hennigan School at 200 Heath St.
The first community meeting about the corridor plan was originally planned to occur late this month, but Schuler said that though the BRA is “prepared, we want to give people time to work a meeting into their busy holiday schedules.”
“We want folks to be part of the conversation,” she said.
During the Nov. 27 Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (JPNC) meeting, members voted to support JPNC Chair Ben Day sending a letter to the BRA outlining concerns with the process. The letter outlines support for the plan, assuming the JPNC approves it first, and concern for completing the corridor plan before more development projects are approved for the area.
The Home for Little Wanderers has nearly moved out of its long-time home at 161 S. Huntington Ave. Despite wide community opposition, the BRA recently approved the razing of all current buildings in favor of a 65-foot-tall building of 196 luxury apartment units. Another 195 luxury apartments are being considered for the vacant lot at 105A S. Huntington. The former Goddard House nursing home at 201 S. Huntington still has an unknown fate.
The corridor plan will outline parameters for population density, neighborhood retail and transportation for the area. The BRA uses formal master plans in many contexts throughout the city, but this “lowercase master plan” is being created especially for the S. Huntington area because of high community demand following the announcement of developments at 105A and 161 South Huntington Ave. this spring.
A working schedule has been drafted for the plan, which is projected to take a little over six months to finalize.
The BRA’s team includes Michael Cannizzo, senior architect and urban designer; Jim Fitzgerald, senior manager of transportation and infrastructure projects; Ted Schwartzberg, planner; and Marie Mercurio, senior planner.
Peter Shanley contributed to this article.