Last updated on June 29, 2025
The Zoning Board of Appeal approved a plan to replace an old gas station on Centre Street with a four-story, 12-unit apartment building, and one commercial space.
The site at 561-579 Centre St. is serving this summer as a pop-up beer garden for Roundhead Brewing, which is owned by two Jamaica Plain residents. Numerous years ago it was home to JP Gas.
All units would be rental units: 3 one-bedroom units, and 9 two-bedroom units. Two units would be income restricted due to the city’s inclusionary development policy.
UniversalHub.com reported the Zoning Board approved the project on June 24 despite needing several variances for height and the inclusion of commercial space on a lot zoned for residential use. The project’s six parking spaces is about a third of what the lot’s zoning would require.
The Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council’s zoning committee voted to oppose the project as too dense. A Lakeville Road resident said she opposed a four-story building and said Lakeville Road is already congested, and that residents oppose office space on the residential lot.
District 6 City Councilor Ben Weber, who lives down the street from the site, said he understood neighbors’ concerns, but at the same time, he’s tired of having an eyesore right on Centre Street.
