In June, Mayor Wu announced the extension of the City of Boston's Office to Residential Conversion Program with $15 million in additional funding from the state. The program, which formally launched in October of 2023, aims...more
Boston is continuing its commitment to planning-led rezoning with the recent release by the Boston Planning and Development Agency ("BPDA") of a draft zoning text amendment and zoning map to implement the PLAN: Downtown...more
Boston’s campaign of planning-led rezoning is proceeding with a recent vote by the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) to petition the Zoning Commission for approval of new citywide form-based zoning templates for...more
The City of Boston is advancing three companion regulatory efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for medium-sized and large buildings. As addressed in our 2021 advisory, the Boston Emissions Reduction and Disclosure...more
2/16/2023
/ Air Pollution ,
Building Codes ,
Building Permits ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Construction Project ,
Environmental Policies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
LEED Rules ,
Net Zero ,
Pollution Control ,
Real Estate Development
Furthering the aims of Boston’s 2019 Climate Action Plan, which identified large buildings as major carbon emitters, Boston City Council amended the Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO) to require all...more
11/10/2021
/ Air Pollution ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Net Zero ,
Real Estate Development ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Renewable Energy ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Working Groups
In a memo from Chief of Operations Patrick Brophy, Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced last night that Boston will incrementally expand its categories of allowed construction to further align with Governor Charlie D. Baker’s...more
5/11/2020
/ Business Closures ,
Business Interruption ,
Construction Project ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Operators of Essential Services ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Real Estate Development ,
State and Local Government ,
Urban Planning & Development
As the U.S. economy enters its tenth year of continuous growth, cities are responding with ways to harness development pressure for affordable housing and for job creation and training. Boston’s elected officials are...more
10/1/2019
/ Affordable Housing ,
Housing Market ,
Job Creation ,
New Legislation ,
Real Estate Development ,
Real Estate Market ,
Rent Control ,
Rental Property ,
State and Local Government ,
Training ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Zoning Laws
The Boston City Council has approved six-year extensions of most urban renewal plans, which grant the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) powers of land assembly and disposition. The BRA originally adopted 40-year plans in...more
After a multi-year study process involving an advisory group of stakeholders, the Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) is proposing revisions to regulations implementing the state waterways licensing program under...more
After several years of study and an appeal by the City of Boston, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has updated Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) for Boston, Chelsea, Revere and Winthrop, which become effective...more
We previously advised that the Walsh administration’s housing plan included an initiative to change Boston’s Inclusionary Development Policy (IDP). In December of 2015, after nearly a year of study and outreach, Mayor Walsh...more
Under its newly-appointed director, Brian Golden, the Boston Redevelopment Authority and Economic Development and Industrial Corporation (BRA/EDIC) has released its 2014 Year in Review report entitled “Building the New Boston...more
The Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs has released for public comment a draft policy on Climate Change Adaptation and Resiliency under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA)....more
The Boston/New England chapter of the Urban Land Institute (“ULI”) has released a report exploring design, policy and risk management strategies to help Boston and nearby cities such as Cambridge and Revere prepare for...more
The Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (“EEA”) has convened an Adaptation Advisory Committee to advise the EEA on incorporating the potential impacts of climate change into environmental impact...more
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) has released proposed Flood Insurance Rate Maps (“FIRMs”) showing updated flood hazard areas for all of Boston, as well as nearby Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop. Interested...more