Council approves six-year extension of BRA urban-renewal powers

The Boston City Council voted today to let the BRA continue to have extra powers over some 3,000 acres in the city - including the power of eminent domain.

The council voted 10-3 in favor - Councilors Tito Jackson (Roxbury), Josh Zakim (Fenway, Beacon Hill, Back Bay) and Ayanna Pressley (at large) were the opponents.

City Council President Michelle Wu, who once opposed an extension, voted for it. She said the new BRA has agreed to open up its budget and finances to the public - and to come before the council every six months for updates. City Councilor Sal LaMattina (Charlestown, East Boston, North End) and Councilor Frank Baker (Dorchester) agreed, saying complaints are about the "old" BRA. The new BRA, they said, is committed to openness.

Still, LaMattina said he wants a review of the boundaries of current urban-renewal districts. He said the Charlestown waterfront has been developed and that it no longer needs urban renewal. In contrast, he said, parts of East Boston are blighted and could use a helping hand from the BRA.

Urban renewal zones in Boston currently include parts of Charlestown, the Fenway, Chinatown, the South End, Roxbury, the Downtown Waterfront, the West End, North Station area, and Government Center.

Jackson praised BRA for new openness, but said urban renewal is still "oftentimes used as a sledgehammer, when we needed a small, very, very precise tool."

Like LaMattina, he questioned why some areas, such as the South End, are still considered urban-renewal districts. And he objected to the fact that the BRA does not legally have to come before the council or answer to it.