BPDA Board Approves 577 Units Across Six Projects at January Meeting

BOSTON -- January 16, 2025, The BPDA Board of Directors unanimously approved six new development projects totaling 577 residential units, 43.5 percent income-restricted, at its January 16 meeting. Director Arthur Shen told the board the projects represent roughly 850,000 square feet of development and an estimated $471 million in investment, generating approximately 750 construction jobs. The headline project, Drexel Village at 175 Ruggles Street in Roxbury, will deliver 217 units with 85 percent income-restricted, a renovated Saint Catherine Drexel Church, and an ABCD child care facility, developed by the Planning Office for Urban Affairs and JGE Development. The board also cleared a 240-unit Mill Creek Residential project at 250 Everett Street in Brighton consistent with the 2022 Western Avenue Corridor study, a 117-unit fully affordable development at 50 Harold Street tied to a new Asian grocery, and Suffolk University's plan to convert its 101 Tremont Street office building into a 280-bed dormitory. Shen closed the meeting by announcing the departure of planning director Amy Chambers, crediting her with launching citywide zoning reform, overseeing five neighborhood plans, and developing new inclusionary zoning and net-zero carbon standards in two years of service.