The Columbia-Savin Hill Civic Association
February 5th, 2024
Arthur Jemison
Boston Planning and Development Agency
City Hall, Boston, MA 02201
Chief Jemison:
The Columbia-Savin Hill Civic Association is committed to supporting Boston’s growth, as envisioned by Mayor Wu’s goal of reaching a population of 800,000 residents in the near future. To achieve this vision, we have calculated the city will require an additional 50,000 housing units, including a remarkable 10,000 units already planned in and around Columbia-Savin Hill.
The BPDA’s proposed Squares and Streets initiative is an important part of achieving the mayor’s objectives. Before we can support the proposed plan, we have identified several significant concerns that must be addressed:
- The proposed rules contain ambiguities and conflicting language that could be exploited by developers. We recommend a thorough review and collaboration with the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Association, which has conducted a comprehensive 20-page review of the suggested policies, to eliminate any inconsistencies.
- Including “non-conforming additions” in the city-wide zoning code would codify questionable past decisions and increase zoning complexity. In practice, allowing non-conforming additions to set precedent would make zoning and enforcement even more complex. We suggest removing this provision to maintain clarity and fairness.
- The proposed rules have no explicit mechanism to balance density in planning areas. While we appreciate the need for density, not every street in a given planning area must be dense. Without modification, Squares and Streets could create multiple new Seaports, but without appropriate infrastructure. The proposal must have an explicit mechanism or formula to balance new zoning types with existing zoning based on an area’s infrastructure capacity.
- The proposal has no mechanism for improving transit. Transit-oriented development is nothing without improved transit. A constant acknowledgement of the need to improve our subway system and stations does not improve the system. We suggest the proposal include an explicit process for tying increased density to concrete transit improvements.
- Squares and Streets does not consider architecture and design. Over the past few years, we have seen the BPDA and ZBA dismantle the diverse architectural styles of neighborhoods throughout the city with homogenized development. We suggest including an efficient architectural review process within the new Squares and Streets process.
- The BPDA has not shared the rest of its vision. Squares and Streets will exist alongside other programs, including zoning and Article 80 improvements, for which the BPDA has shared only high-level goals. The ambiguity inserts doubt about how Squares and Streets will work in practice. Before approving Squares and Streets, we ask the BPDA to share high-level plans for Article 80, historic overlay districts, zoning regulations, and how these programs will intersect.
We are interested in collaborating with the BPDA on this and other initiatives to enable Boston’s growth. By amending Squares and Streets and formalizing its intentions, we would support this vision for Boston and its communities.
The Columbia-Savin Hill Civic Association