Boston ZBA Approves 95-Unit Downtown Office-to-Residential Conversion

BOSTON -- August 13, 2024, Boston ZBA approves 95-unit downtown office-to-residential conversion at Devonshire Street. The Boston Zoning Board of Appeal voted unanimously Tuesday to approve a proposal by STJ Devonshire Equity Partners to convert three connected Financial District buildings, 83-89 Devonshire Street, 258 Washington Street, and 262 Washington Street, into 95 rental apartments under the city's Office-to-Residential Conversion Pilot Program. Attorney John Caldini told the six-member board that office occupancy had plummeted to less than 20 percent after COVID-19, making conversion the most viable path forward. The roughly 86,700 square feet of residential space will contain 29 studios, 59 one-bedrooms, and 12 two-bedrooms, with no parking provided or required; approximately 15,800 square feet of existing ground-floor retail will remain intact. The board also unanimously approved a six-unit homeownership condominium at 54 Dorset Street in North Dorchester, revised down from eight parking spaces to five and up in open space by 20 percent, despite the Boston Planning Department remaining on record recommending denial without prejudice over paving and cantilever concerns.