Boston: Planning Advances Sign Code Updates, New Chinatown Zoning

The Planning Department this month recommended approval of a new sign code, updated Chinatown zoning, and the tentative designation of development teams to redevelop public sites for middle-income housing. In addition, staff recommended approval of six new development projects representing approximately 742,090 square feet (SF). Four of those projects are office-to-residential conversions. All were approved. The newly approved development proposals will create 611 new homes, including 214 units that are designated income-restricted, and will support approximately 689 construction jobs and 68 permanent jobs. The projects advanced today will help make Boston a more resilient, affordable, and equitable city.

Planning and Zoning

Planning advances updated zoning and design guidelines for Chinatown

Staff advanced new zoning for Chinatown which will make it easier for people to open small businesses, protect the historical row houses in the neighborhood, and improve the climate resilience of the neighborhood. This updated zoning is informed by the feedback staff heard over the last couple of years about the cultural identity of Chinatown and how best to preserve it, including Chinatown's ability to support new immigrants, and to provide affordable housing and commercial spaces. Zoning in the commercial heart of Chinatown will make it easier for small businesses to open and to renovate, as well as continue to allow for much-needed housing in the area. In the area of the neighborhood with the historic row houses, the zoning will be more restrictive to discourage redevelopment. The zoning also includes new citywide districts for institutional uses, mapped to cover Tufts University and Tufts Medical Center. The rezoning process for Chinatown is part of the larger comprehensive strategy for PLAN: Downtown, which was adopted in September of 2025. These updates will now need to be approved by the Boston Zoning Commission.

Staff also advanced new Design Guidelines for the neighborhood through an amendment to PLAN: Downtown, which emphasize ways for new projects to help enhance Chinatown's rich cultural character, including continuing the scale of vibrant storefronts and facades in the neighborhood and the role of family associations as cultural anchors. The guidelines also include recommendations for improving community spaces, public art, and green space across the neighborhood.

Planning advances updates to the City's sign code

For the first time in over 50 years, Planning advanced comprehensive new zoning for signs in the City of Boston. This new zoning will make the process for small businesses to put up more simple signage by setting clear rules for signs, streamlining the process and eliminating unnecessary review wait times. Currently, every individual sign in the city must go through a design review process with Planning Department staff, which contributes to significant wait times. These proposed zoning updates will allow most signs to be permitted without review, with the exception of special, larger signs that could have large, visual impacts to the public realm. The new process will save small businesses time and money. These updates will go into effect once approved by the Boston Zoning Commission.

Urban Design

Planning advances new 'Color Flows' activations in Downtown and Chinatown

The Board authorized temporary use of Winter Street in Downtown Crossing and of Liberty Tree Plaza and Chinatown for multi-week events this summer and fall known as 'Color Flows.'  The location on Winter Street will repeat the event from last fall, transforming the street with colorful art installations, food trucks, interactive events, and cultural programming. The event on Liberty Tree Plaza will create a welcoming, public space by reinterpreting the site's legacy of civic gathering through contemporary art and cultural programming in Chinatown.

'Color Flows' is part of the City of Boston's broader effort to reimagine how our streets and pedestrian zones can be safer, more engaging, and enjoyable for all. These activations build off of recommendations in the Boston Design Vision, which lays out a five-year roadmap to guide future design strategies and recommendations intended to inform how the built environment is shaped to uplift identity and elevate quality design. The roadmap identified a series of projects, policies, and processes that could be leveraged to advance the Design Vision, including ways to activate pedestrian spaces like these. 'Color Flows on Winter Street' will take place daily from 11am-6pm from June-October, and 'Color Flows on Liberty Tree Plaza' will take place daily from 10am-5pm from June-August.

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Real Estate

Planning recommends tentative designation of four parcels for Welcome Home, Boston Phase 3

Planning advanced the tentative designation of four development teams to redevelop four publicly owned sites in Roxbury into new homes. The sites are located at: 19 Laurel Street, 11-13 Catawba Street, 14 Catawba Street, and 100 Ruthven Street. Combined with five other publicly owned parcels in Dorchester and Hyde Park that are part of the Mayor's Office of Housing's catalogue of land, these parcels will make up Phase Three of Welcome Home, Boston. Phase Three of this program will be income-restricted to prospective middle-income homebuyers making between 120 percent and 135 percent of the Area Median Income. This effort is in response to the lack of middle income-housing options throughout the City and region. The majority of these homes will be two-bedroom units, with some one- and three-bedroom units mixed in, and they will be a mix of ground-up new construction, as well as modular. These sites were identified as underutilized through the Citywide land audit announced by Mayor Wu in January 2022.

Development Projects

Project to create new West End Library with housing above moves forward

Housing: 119 income-restricted homes

Jobs: Approximately 174 construction jobs, approximately 26 permanent jobs

Community: Brand new branch of the BPL, close proximity to public transportation, groceries, and healthcare facilities

Sustainability: LEED Gold, Passive House compliant

This project will demolish the current West End branch of the Boston Public Library and build an entirely new, two-story branch with 12 stories of income-restricted housing above it. The 119 new homes will be a mix of studios, one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments. This new development will improve the area with a new public plaza and shared community amenities for library visitors and residents. It is also in close proximity to public transportation, groceries, and healthcare facilities. In 2018, the Mayor's Office of Housing started the Housing With Public Assets program to evaluate existing municipal facilities for housing production opportunities. This process identified the West End Library as an ideal location for mixed-used redevelopment to preserve and improve library services and also introduce new housing.

Bartlett Place Lot C project to create new homeownership opportunities in Roxbury

Housing: 61 homeownership units, 12 income-restricted units

Jobs: Approximately 99 construction jobs

Community: Artist live/work units, new publicly accessible pedestrian connection

Sustainability: LEED Gold

This project will build new housing in Nubian Square that will be for a mix of incomes. Of the 61 homeownership units, 12 will be income-restricted, and four will be artist live/work units. The building will also feature a variety of residential amenities, including bike parking, lounge and gallery space for artists, a dog washing room, and courtyard. The project will also improve the public realm by creating a new connection from Bartlett Street to Bartlett Station Drive.

Offices at 419 Boylston Street to be converted to housing in Back Bay

Housing: 44 units, seven income-restricted

Jobs: Approximately 44 construction jobs, approximately 15 permanent jobs

Community: New residents living Downtown

Sustainability: Adaptive re-use and preservation of existing building, all-electric

Located in Back Bay, this project will convert what is currently an eight-story office building into 44 new homes, seven of which will be income-restricted. The existing retail tenants on the first and second floors will remain. As this is located in the Back Bay Architectural District, any possible exterior alterations to the building would need to be reviewed by the Back Bay Architectural Commission. This project is one of 26 applicants to Mayor Wu's successful Office-to-Residential Conversion Program, which is on track to convert 31 buildings and 1.5M SF of former office space into 1,785 new homes.

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Office space at 50 Congress Street Downtown to be converted housing

Housing: 169 units, 34 income-restricted units

Jobs: Retention of existing retail tenant, approximately 192 construction jobs, approximately 11 permanent jobs

Community: New residents living Downtown

Sustainability: Adaptive re-use and preservation of existing building, LEED Silver, compliant with Stretch Energy Code

This project will convert the existing ten-story building into 169 new homes, including 34 that will be income-restricted. These will be a mix of studios, one-, and two-bedroom apartments. Due to updated zoning regulations Downtown, the project will not require zoning relief, allowing these new homes to be completed more quickly. This project is one of 26 applicants to Mayor Wu's successful Office-to-Residential Conversion Program, which is on track to convert 31 buildings and 1.5M SF of former office space into 1,785 new homes.

1 State Street project to convert offices to housing

Housing: 76 residential units, 13 income-restricted units

Jobs: Retention of existing retail tenant, approximately 59 construction jobs, approximately five permanent jobs

Community: New residents living Downtown

Sustainability: Adaptive re-use and preservation of existing building, all-electric, LEED Gold

This project will convert the existing 14-story office building into 76 new homes, including 13 that will be income-restricted. These will be a mix of studios, and one-bedroom apartments. Due to updated zoning regulations Downtown, the project will not require zoning relief, allowing these new homes to be completed more quickly. This project is one of 26 applicants to Mayor Wu's successful Office-to-Residential Conversion Program, which is on track to convert 31 buildings and 1.5M SF of former office space into 1,785 new homes.

Former Fort Point office and warehouse space at 320 Summer Street to be converted to homes

Housing: 145 units, 29 income-restricted units

Jobs: Ground floor retail, approximately 121 construction jobs, approximately 11 permanent jobs

Community: Amenity space, roof deck

Sustainability: Adaptive re-use and preservation of existing building

Located in Fort Point, this project will convert what is currently two combined brick and beam buildings that were formerly warehouses and office space into housing. The building will include 145 new units, of which 29 will be income-restricted. These will be a mix of studios, one-, and two-bedroom apartments. The project continues the evolution of the Fort Point neighborhood from industrial and commercial use toward a vibrant, mixed-use residential district, while honoring the architectural legacy that defines its identity. This project is one of 26 applicants to Mayor Wu's successful Office-to-Residential Conversion Program, which is on track to convert 31 buildings and 1.5M SF of former office space into 1,785 new homes.

In addition to these projects, the Board approved:

An update to a previously approved project at 90 Braintree Street to reorient the parking on the site, which will shuffle the orientation of floor plans and green space.

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About the Planning Department

The City of Boston's Planning Department shapes growth that serves Boston's residents and centers their needs. Our mission is to address our City's greatest challenges: resilience, affordability, and equity, and to take real estate actions and prioritize planning, development, and urban design solutions that further these priorities. We seek to build trust with communities through transparent processes that embrace predictable growth and shape a more inclusive city for all. Learn more at bostonplans.org, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram (https://bostonplans.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=c680a920917b91377ae543202&id=2bb7565df2&e=26b862bb6a) @BostonPlans.

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