By Gazette Staff
The Boston Planning Department (BPD) held a public meeting via Zoom this past Monday regarding the proposal by BBH Community Development LLC, the development arm of B’nai B’rith Housing New England, to construct a 100% affordable senior housing community at 4259–4267 Washington Street in Roslindale Square on the location of a parking lot for the former Bank of America building.
Camille Platt-DeCosta, a Senior Project Manager with the BPD, efficiently moderated the session, which was the first official Article 80 public meeting for the project since the filing of its plans with the city in September. Article 80 is the Boston zoning code section that establishes the review process for large-scale development projects.
The meeting was recorded to allow for comments from members of the public to be submitted through November 3 on the project webpage. Residents also can email their comments directly to Ms. Platt-Decosta at [email protected].
Chris James, a Senior Project Manager with BBH, presented the proposal. He noted that BBH is a non-profit housing developer that aims to ease the housing crisis. BBH has constructed projects in Brighton, Newton, West Roxbury, Swampscott, Hyde Park, and Sudbury. James said BBH’s projects are designed to provide an independent, services-enriched senior housing model that includes gardening clubs, exercise classes, and group trips.
The project will consist of a six-story (the sixth story will be recessed back from Washington St.), 42,200 square-foot, mixed-use building (on a footprint of about 7800 sq. ft.) with a mostly-brick facade that will provide 41, one-bedroom apartments for adults 55 and older earning at or below 60% of the Boston Area Median Income (AMI).
BBH’s resident services program will be incorporated into the project which will feature a fitness center, laundry facilities, a multipurpose room with a roof deck, and 4,250 square feet of ground-floor commercial space (which will be offered to the Thrift Shop of Boston, a revered local institution), plus a landscaped outdoor courtyard area.
The structure will be designed to meet the new passive-construction guidelines and Boston’s zero-emissions building standards.
James said BBH will begin the process of obtaining funding from city and state sources this winter, which he said will consume most of 2026, with an anticipated start of construction in the spring of 2027 and a completion date of fall, 2028.
James said that the project does not need any variances because it lies within the S-4 Active Squares Sub-District within the overall Squares + Streets zoning district that allows for buildings of up to seven stories. This will be the first project in Rozzie Square under the city’s new Squares + Streets zoning guidelines.
He said it is anticipated that few, if any, of the residents will have cars and will rely on MBTA bus service. There will be bicycle storage on the ground floor per city requirements. James said a shadow study revealed that the building will not cast shadows on any nearby residential properties. The courtyard will contain landscaping, plantings, and seating areas.
James presented a chart of the AMI breakdown for the units: 16 units will be reserved for tenants with less than 30% AMI (which is $34,740 for a single person based on an AMI of $115,000 in Suffolk County); one unit for a tenant with less than 50% of the AMI; and 24 units for tenants with less than 60% of the AMI.
James revealed, in response to a question from an attendee, that BBH also owns the adjacent former bank building, but has no specific plans for redeveloping the building at this time, though it ultimately will be developed for affordable housing.
Roslindale resident Ben Bruno offered his enthusiastic support for the project. “It is fantastic to see this become the first Squares + Streets project,” Bruno said.
Another resident, Stephen Gag, who lives nearby on South St., lauded BBH for working with the community up to this point. “I am very much in favor of this project,” said Gag. “We need this type of housing. They (BBH) are looking out for the needs of the community. I also am pleased that they are working with the Thrift Shop to make sure that this important business remains in the square.”
“I also think the project is great,” added Jane Adler, who lives on Cohasset St., which runs parallel to Washington St. behind the site. “However, some residents are concerned about parking either by the tenants or their visitors.”
James said it is hoped that parking spaces will be made available in the rear of the building, though that is still to be determined.
District 5 City Councillor Enrique Pepen said he has been meeting with representatives of the developer, which has a similar project in another portion of his district in Hyde Park. “This has been a project that I’ve kept an eye on for quite a while,” said Pepen, who happens to live on Cohasset St. and acknowledged the potential parking issues for residents of that street, many of whom do not have driveways and park on the street. “The concept of affordable senior housing in the middle of Roslindale Square is amazing.”
Mike Collins from Cohasset St. lauded the passive housing standards being implemented, but asked about the drain water management plan because of its potential impact on the culvert that flows underneath the bank building.
“We have localized flooding, especially during the winter when we have snow and it freezes. What kind of stormwater drainage strategy do you have?” Collins asked.
Katya Podsiadlo from Verdant Landscape Architecture said that there will be an infiltration chamber system below the patio pavement in the courtyard area that will be adjacent to the culvert. Kevin Maguire from BBH pointed out that rainwater from the roof will be routed to the capture system that eventually will go either into the ground or into the culvert.
Alan Wright, another nearby abutter, expressed concerns about traffic. “The city must do a comprehensive traffic study before this project gets underway to obtain a traffic count and average speed on adjacent streets,” Wright said, noting that motorists will often use Cohasset and other streets as cut-throughs when traffic backs up at the lights on Washington St. during the rush-hour periods.
Jill Lacey Griffin, a board member of the Thrift Shop of Boston, said she appreciated the concern that BBH was taking with regard to the Thrift Shop to ensure that it remains in Roslindale Sq. “for many years to come.” She also lauded the design of the building, which she described as “beautiful.”
Nearby resident Mark Tedrow voiced his support for the project, noting that “the best thing that can happen to a parking lot is for it to be used for affordable housing.”
Nate Stell of Farqhuar St., who has been active with the Abundant Housing Massachusetts group, praised the project. “We could not have asked for a better project to kick off the Squares + Streets rezoning for the square,” said Stell. “This will be a phenomenal catalyst for the next chapter of the square’s development.” However, Stell also raised the issue of parking and suggested that resident permit parking in the area may be necessary.
An abutter’s meeting has been scheduled for next week.