The Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) board voted during its monthly meeting on Feb. 11 to approve the S. Huntington Avenue guidelines, according to BRA spokesperson Nick Martin.
Martin said that the guidelines will next go before the Zoning Commission on March 9.
The guidelines are supposed to address the types of developments preferred by the community for the S. Huntington Avenue corridor. The guidelines will be used by the BRA on pending and future projects.
One recommendation that the guidelines include is to expand ground floor use. That will allow for developing buildings with a larger variety of uses—such as dry cleaning, restaurants, coffee shops—in an attempt to make the area more pedestrian-friendly.
If the Zoning Commission approves the guidelines, the mayor will have 10 days to sign them into effect. If he signs the guidelines, they will become an amendment to local zoning in Mission Hill and Jamaica Plain. The guidelines are currently seen as recommendations, but they will become legal zoning requirements if they are approved.
The BRA held a lengthy process to come up with the guidelines at residents’ requests due to controversial developments at 161 and 105A S. Huntington Ave.
For more information about the guidelines, visit bit.ly/1P9Vglg.