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Zoning board defers action on hurricane-resistant subdivision on West Roxbury/Jamaica Plain line
By adamg on Thu, 09/29/2016 - 9:41am
The Bulletin updates us on the latest action involving a proposed 20-unit townhouse project off Allandale Street.
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Comments
Too bad-- it's a cool project
Too bad-- it's a cool project, and in a place that won't become overly dense with the development.
They should move it
Seems like if this is a great idea, they should move it somewhere closer to public transit to further minimize the environmental footprint. Like this could have been the Ukraine Way development only the fancy folks who this was targeted at want to live in the woods, not on Hyde Park Ave. I think zoning exemptions should be stuff like the building above Redd's being 4' too tall or the like - not putting 20 unit townhouses on a single family lot.
That all being said, such a typical JP/WR attitude in that article - basically 'we need more housing, but I have a single family in the woods that I bought years ago so please don't let it impact me.' Just like all the people who live in Brookline and Newton and fight to preserve the status quo in the schools.
Single family lot?
It's 2 acres! This ain't Dover, it's Boston.
Sorry, that stood out. Other than that I'm with you 100%
5 single-family homes
can be built as of right on this lot, in addition, I think, to the current house already on the land.
NIMBY
Otherwise known as NIMBYism.
Everyone wants development and transit until it effects their bottom line.
That's the thing though.
That's the thing though. Their bottom line is going to go up, not down. Development has been raising housing prices, not depressing it.
Correct. More housing doesn't lower prices.
Not in these kinds of regions. It raises the bottom line for developers and yet there's more traffic with many of these kinds of projects added.
Not everyone wants
Not everyone wants development and this is a separate topic than transit.
Many projects like this add the need for even more investment.
It's also in one of the last large pieces of undeveloped woodland in the area.
You are apparently resentful that some people own property and you just want to keep building to make rents lower or something.
I wonder if the opponents to
I wonder if the opponents to this project would be partially mollified by building the tallest zoning compliant solid fence around the 64 Allendale property. That way they could be more certain that their enjoyment of Allendale Wood would not be impacted by what's going on in a private parcel of land.
Dog park!
Two acre dog park.
There, I've solved all of the U-hub's problems for the day. You're all welcome.
It would have
to be a pretty tall fence to block the view of 3 1/2 to 4-story townhouses built on a 40-foot slope over the woodlands. I assume one of the appeals to buyers there, is that though they won't have much open space because of the density, they'll have access to over 100 acres next door.
(Current zoning calls for 2 1/2 stories.)
If zoning regulations need to be reevaluated, it should be done in a transparent way involving the whole community. Submitting a project needing relief for over 60 variances isn't a "variance" it's total rezoning.
Allandale Road
is truly an oasis in the city. While recognizing the need for more housing, I really treasure the countrylike feel of Allandale Woods and the surrounding area. I don't live there but I sure I understand the desire to keep it that way.
Allandale Road is a drag
Allandale Road is a drag strip. If you're thinking it's calm please do not cross the road to get to Allandale Farm for example from the other side of the road. You will likely get run over.
The proposed project
is 1/8 of a mile from the Arnold Arboretum, one of the largest wooded areas in the city. The Arboretum is a preserve, while the Allandale Woods are not. Meanwhile, we desperately need additional housing units convenient to public transit, and if your mailing address says "Boston," is is silly of you to believe that you are entitled to 1/2-acre zoning.
Not sure
what you mean by preserve. The Arnold Arboretum is a groomed and planned Arboretum, with designed roads, paths, grouping of similar trees. Allandale Woods is a second-growth natural forest, an urban wild, with the beautiful Rock Pond, wetlands, and a certified vernal pool. There are no planned landscape designs nor lawns (there is a stone wall). Visiting both of them is wonderful, but the experience is entirely different.
The West Roxbury zoning is for single-family 8000 sq. ft. lots with the accompanying frontage, height, and setback numbers.
South St.
You'll always have South St. in the Arbs.
The Actual Truth
Most of the concerns on this project would be resolved if the developer would establish a larger buffer zone between the building structures and the Allandale wetlands and vernal pools which lie downgrade right on the property line and are legitimately sensitive ecological spots. That was the primary ask from the Parks Dept and other environmental and neighborhood groups. The developer instead chose to drag this out and fight the wetlands designation itself in court, which is still ongoing. That's mostly why it's gotten to this point, it would likely have been approved by now in some form otherwise.