Both Melnea Cass Boulevard and Dudley Square nodes present the greatest opportunity for equitable development.  However Dudley Square has much greater opportunity for development capacity than the other nodes which are less than average across the study areas.  For the purposes of prioritizing development that is equitable, our findings conclude Dudley Square is the most compable node for additional housing.

 

Based on the data we collected, we identified the following needs:

• Gentrification Mitigation

  • Affordable Housing

  • Neighborhood Preservation

  • Displacement Mitigation

• Senior Housing

• Underutilization of Density and Mixed-Use Opportunities   

  • Density Bonus Program, JP/ROX Plan

• Zoning Reconsiderations

  • Utilization of parking lots for residential and commercial mixed use.

 

Housing Goals

Dudley Square in Roxbury is home to a disproportionate number of low-income and housing cost burdened residents in comparison to the Boston area. Our housing scheme recommendations, as described below, are based on the above demonstrated need to increase equity and access for existing Dudley Square residents. We created the following goals for our housing scheme:

• Increase the number of permanently affordable units for sale to homeowners, especially for family sized units and seniors.

• Work in conjunction with local actors like the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative to create affordable housing within community land trusts.

• Utilize the Density Bonus Program as part of the JP/Rox Plan in addition to rezoning for more residential density.

• Rezone parking lots for residential and commercial mixed use.

 

Using our opportunity FAR and assuming a five-story structure, we were able to calculate the total number of available units we would be able to construct in Dudley Square without changing current zoning. Dudley has the immediate capacity for 900 more units—with equal weight across studio, one, two and three bedroom units—that could hold 2,429 people.

 

Policy Recommendations

 

Senior Housing

The aging of the Baby Boomers will cause the senior population in Roxbury to increase by 1,200 people, or 92%, through 2030. To put this in perspective, the total population of Dudley is only projected to increase by 2,000, or 18 percent, over the same period.

 

Based on this, we propose a plan similar to the projections of the Boston 2030 Housing Plan (but with increased city-assisted low-income units) with 100 new units of senior housing per year with 50% city-assisted low-income housing, 30% middle income unassisted housing, and 20% market rate unassisted senior housing.

 

Community Engagement and Community Partners

Existing community partners are essential allies in creating permanent affordability, especially with cooperative housing. The Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative was formed in the 1980s and since has acquired more than five dozen acres of land which they have turned into affordable homes, urban farms and gardens and community open spaces. Their partnership is crucial moving forward with any development in the area.

 

Zoning Recommendations – Parking Lots as Dead Zones

The Dudley Square area has an excess of large lots (over 1,000 square feet) that are in the city center and can be used as mixed use development, including parking. We propose that—at minimum—the two parcels we have identified below be decommissioned as parking lots and rezoned as residential and commercial mixed-use.

 

Reduce Cost-Burdened Renters

In order to create new buildings without substantial cost increases the City of Boston must step in and invest in affordable housing and business opportunities in the area. The City of Boston passed the Community Preservation Act (CPA) in November of 2016 which provides additional resources to the city for affordable housing, open space and historic preservation. We recommend an aggressive adherence to these standards.

 

Our housing scheme recommendations are neighborhood wide but we have identified specific parcels below to illustrate our proposed plan.

 

1003 Harrison Avenue

This one story, vacant warehouse has an adjoining unused parking lot that brings its total square footage to over 60,000, more than half of which can be living area. This lot is currently zoned for commercial use but we recommend a mixed-use development of five stories (four residential and one commercial).

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