The Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) board voted to enter into an Affordable Rental Housing Agreement and Restriction (ARHAR) agreement in connection with the proposed development located at 12 Rock Hill Rd. in Jamaica Plain at the board’s June meeting.
Developer MDH Nominee Trust plans to replace an auto body shop with a three story, 14-unit residential rental building with 18 parking spaces on the ground floor at a former garage The project included 12, two-bedroom units and two, one-bedroom units on the second and third floor. The project also included a13,000 square foot roof deck.
The Proposed Project is subject to the BPDA’s inclusionary Development Policy (IDP). The IDP requires that 13 percent of the total number of units within the development be designated as IDP units.
With the BPDA entering into the ARHAR agreement with the developer, two units within the Rock Hill Road project will be created as IDP rental units and made affordable to households earning not more than 70 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI).
According to the BPDA board the location of the IDP Units will be finalized in conjunction with BPDA staff and outlined in the ARHAR agreement.
Under BPDA rules IDP Units must be comparable in size, design, and quality to the market rate units in the Rock Hill Road development and cannot be stacked or concentrated on the same floor, and must be consistent in bedroom count with the entire project.
The ARHAR must be executed along with, or prior to, the issuance of the Certification of Approval for the proposed project. The developer must also register the project with the Boston Fair Housing Commission (BFHC).
Also under the agreement the IDP Units will not be marketed prior to the submission and approval of an Affirmative Marketing Plan by the BFHC and the BPDA. An affordability covenant will be placed on the IDP Units to maintain affordability for a total period of 50 years–this includes 30 years along with a BPDA option to extend for an additional period of 20 years.
Entering into a ARHAR is a common part of the Article 80 review process. The developer and BPDA staff will finalize how the developer will meet its IDP obligations, and these obligations will be spelled out in the recommendation memo submitted to the BPDA Board for approval.
When possible, the actual locations of the units will also be decided at this time. The exact locations and unit numbers of the IDP units are then outlined in the ARHAR.
The affordable housing agreement must be completed before a building permit can be issued.