New affordable apartments and houses approved for Jamaica Plain

The Board of Appeals yesterday approved two projects that will increase the number of affordable housing units along the Southwest Corridor: Two six-story apartment buildings at 125 Amory Street with twice as many affordable units as required by the city and four two-family houses about a mile to the south that will be aimed entirely at people who could not otherwise afford to live in the increasingly pricey neighborhood.

The board approved plans by the Community Builders, Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corp. and Urban Edge for 287 apartments in two buildings at the site of a current BHA senior project at 125 Amory Street, between the Jackson Square and Stony Brook T stops. Roughly 26% of the units will be set aside for people making no more than 70% of the area median income, as part of a deal with the BHA in which the builders will also renovate the existing 199 senior apartments - and add up to 12 more.

The board approved a third new building with 63 units - all to be rented as affordable - earlier this year. The BPDA has also approved the work.

The board also approved plans by the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corp. for four two-family homes on Call Street at Carolina Avenue, on land left over from the failed I-95 project in the 1970s and deeded for the homes by the state and city. The people who buy the homes cannot make more than the area median income; their deeds will require them to rent the second units in each building to people making no more than 60% of the area median income. Three of the four units will have four bedrooms.

Construction will be subsidized in part by funds from the Community Preservation Act surcharge approved by voters in 2016.

Several city officials sent representatives to the zoning-board hearing to support both projects. Nobody spoke against them.

125 Amory St. project notification form (43M PDF).