Last updated on May 10, 2017
The Boston Zoning Board of Appeals approved a 45-unit, six-story apartment building at the corner of Washington and Green streets Tuesday despite lukewarm community support and opposition from City Councilors Matt O’Malley and Tito Jackson.
Last month the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council’s Zoning Committee decided to neither approve or disapprove the project sited for 3353 Washington St. The full JPNC voted to deny all eight variances the project had needed. That vote was 9-3, according to Kevin Moloney, chairman of the JPNC. Here’s the text of a letter the JPNC sent to the ZBA on why they opposed the variances.
The project’s variances included having less parking than zoning requires and being too tall. The Mayor’s Office also approved of the project, according to UniversalHub.com.
Developer Mordechai Levin plans to first raze four existing buildings and then erect a 68-foot tall residential development with retail on the first floor, plus rooftop mezzanines.
As with all developments, residents often have concerns about the amount of affordable housing units. The current proposal has about 18 percent of the units at various levels regarded as affordable units, and the original proposal in March 2015 was for 13 percent of the units to be affordable. UniversalHub.com said there would be eight affordable units and six would be for people making no more than 50 percent of the area median income and two for people making no more than 70 percent.
Jamaica Plain News has covered this development extensively. Here are previous articles about it:
- Six-Story, 45-Unit Building Divides Residents, Neighborhood Board
- Six-Story Apartment Building Proposed for Washington and Green Streets
- Residents Unhappy with Proposed Washington and Green Street Development
- JPNC Housing Committee Says ‘No’ to 3353 Washington St.
- BPDA Approves 45-Unit Building at 3353 Washington St.
[Editor’s note: We’ve updated this story to include that the full JP Neighborhood Council voted against the variances needed for the project.]
