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Description
Docket #0286 - A hearing regarding surplus parcels on Condor Street in East Boston
A
And
today
we
are
here
for
a
hearing
on
docket
number
zero,
two
eight
six
message
and
order
to
declare
surplus
certain
city-owned,
formerly
Boston,
Planning
and
Development
Agency
owned
parcels
of
vacant
land
in
East.
Boston
I
want
to
remind
everyone
that
this
public
hearing
is
being
recorded
in
broadcast,
live
on
channels,
Comcast,
eight
RCN,
82
and
Verizon
1964,
as
well
as
streaming
on
the
city
of
Boston
website.
We
will
take
public
testimony
at
the
end.
Should
anyone
wish
to
offer
some
and
without
further
ado,
then
I
will
hand
it
over
to
our
administration
representatives.
A
B
Good
afternoon
William
a
person
Assistant
Director
for
real
estate
management
sales
for
the
city
of
Boston's,
Department,
Neighborhood,
Development,
counselor
I'm,
here
before
you
today
to
request
the
surplus
of
these
three
parcels
in
the
East
Boston
neighborhood
district
one.
These
three
parcels
are
formally
be
PD,
a
parcels
that
were
acquired
by
that
agency
in
November
of
2007.
They
were
transferred
to
the
Department
of
Neighborhood
Development
in
August
of
2015
for
development
as
affordable
housing,
as
these
parcels
were
originally
acquired,
using
inclusionary
development
funding
in
January
of
2017.
B
This
D
and
D
initiated
a
community
process
and
coordination
with
Eagle
Hill
Civic
Association
to
discuss
the
developments
of
these
parcels
and
with
strong
community
support.
We
released
an
RFP
for
the
site
in
May
of
2017
for
a
mixed
income.
Mixed-Use
development
that
incorporated
artists
work
live
space.
B
We
received
four
proposals
that
we
took
out
to
the
community
for
a
presentation
of
October
of
2017
and
we
intend
to
present
a
recommendation
for
a
tentative
developer,
designation
at
the
March
14th
public
facilities
Commission
just
around
the
corner.
So
these
three
parcels
in
total
are
twenty
six
thousand
two
hundred
and
fifty
square
feet.
B
They
are
across
the
street
from
the
former
Hess
site
that
the
BPD
a
has
designated
the
East
Boston
CD
for
redevelopment
of
they
have
a
combined
assessed
value
of
just
under
five
hundred
and
sixty
thousand,
and
have
an
appraised
value
of
seven
hundred
and
twenty
thousand,
and
should
they
be
voted
as
surplus.
Again,
we
plan
to
make
the
recommendation
at
the
next
public
facilities
commission
for
development
proposal
that
incorporates
ownership
and
rental
a
good
mixture
of
affordability,
with
two-thirds,
affordable,
one-third
market
and
they
incorporate
artists,
live
space
and
community
artists.
Workspace.
B
Has
it
has
a
strong
affordability
and
if
you're
interested
I
can
actually
read
to
you,
the
mix
and
I'll
actually
also
detail
the
mix
of
ownership
versus
rental,
okay,
so
total
of
41
units
and
two
buildings
there
will
be
eight
sales
and
33
rental
opportunities.
Two
of
the
sales
will
be
moderate
income
at
80%
of
area.
Median
income
3
will
be
middle
income
sales
at
a
hundred
percent
of
AMI
and
three
will
be
market
rate
sales.
B
There
will
be
four
voucher,
assisted
rental
units
restricted
at
or
below
of
30
percent
AMI.
There
will
be
three
affordable
rental
units
restricted
at
or
below
of
60%
ami.
There
will
be
seventeen
artists,
rental
units
restricted
at
or
below
60%
ami,
and
there
will
be
nine
market
rate
rental
units
and
those
market
rate.
Rental
and
ownership
units
are
being
used
across
subsidize
the
development,
so
the
city
has
to
contribute
fewer
resources
for
those
affordable
housing
units
and.
B
All
of
the
units
are
identical:
there's
there's,
there's
no
differentiation
between
the
units,
but
a
certain
portion
of
those
units
are
being
set
aside
for
the
artists
and
then
down
below
there's
community
artists
workspace
and
in
the
development
that
we're
recommending
also
incorporates
public
gallery
space.
So
there's
going
to
be
public
areas
where
the
public
can
come
in
and
actually
see,
work
displayed
by
the
hardest
that
live
and
work
there.
Okay,.
A
B
A
And
then
are
there
any?
Is
there
any
potential
and
I
had
heard
that
San
Francisco
in
increasing
their
federal
federally
subsidized,
affordable
units
were
able
to
work
with
the
agencies
to
have
some
sort
of
preference
for
very,
very
local
residence
by
census
tract
or
something
like
that
it
has
Boston
ever.
This
is
not
necessary,
relevant
right.
B
That's
that's
been
a
bit
of
a
challenge
for
us,
and
we've
been
working
extensively
with
the
Office
of
Fair
Housing
locally
to
try
to
get
that.
We
have
come
up
with
some
recent
new
language,
we're
calling
an
anti
displacement
language
which
puts
a
priority
on
to
the
local
neighborhoods.
That's
very
new
we've
used,
it
I
think
on
a
couple
of
other
offerings
and
we
try
to
incorporate
it
whenever
we
can.
Okay.
B
After
the
tentative
designation,
once
we've
actually
selected
a
developer,
then
we
have
a
one-year
diligence
period
where
we
work
out
all
of
the
financing
details,
all
of
the
entitlements
permitting
all
of
the
variances,
and
it
would
be
during
that
time
when
all
of
that
gets
worked
out.
Once
we
have
a
developer
designated,
that's
only
create
the
fair
housing
plan
and
it
would
be
part
of
the
fair
housing
plan.
Great.
A
B
A
B
Folks
have
already
bid-
and
it
typically
is
renegotiated
during
the
diligence
period,
but
this
project
will
be
heavily
subsidized,
so
our
focus
will
be
on
keeping
the
public
subsidy
had
its
lowest
as
opposed
to
trying
to
get
revenues
out
of
the
sale.
Any
additional
revenue
that
the
city
would
receive
from
a
negotiation
and
the
increase
in
the
purchase
price
would
be
offset
by
an
increase
in
the
subsidy
mm-hmm.
A
A
B
B
C
A
Subsidy
happens,
correct
and
let
me
see
if
I
have
any
other
questions
before
I
turn
it
over
to
councillor
Edwards
okay.
So
the
is
the
process
that
you
went
through
for
this
set
of
parcels.
You
know
in
terms
of
going
out
to
the
Neighborhood
Association
having
a
five-month
period
there
before
the
RFP
and
then
presentations
another
four
months
after
that
is
that
about
the
typical
time
frame,
typical.
B
A
D
C
B
B
B
D
B
D
B
Then
we
would
begin
the
one-year
diligence
period
that
can
be
extended,
and
during
that
time
we
will
be
working
to
finalize
the
funding,
the
financing
for
the
project,
all
of
the
variances
that
are
required
all
of
the
permitting
it's
at
that
time.
That
will
also
engage
the
Office
of
Fair
Housing
and
we'll
get
them
to
approve
the
fair
housing
plan
and
all
of
those
matters
are
worked
out.
We
do
have
a
new
anti
displacement
program
at
the
department
that.
D
B
Very
new
that
we
are
pushing
every
time
we
get
the
opportunity,
and
that
is
collaborated
and
coordinated
through
Fair
Housing.
So
once
we
actually
designate
a
developer,
then
we
can
begin
the
process
of
working
with
fair
housing
and
determine
what
preference
language
is
going
to
be
allowed
for.
The
project
do.
D
B
D
B
D
D
B
Is
just
an
estimate,
though,
based
on
you
know,
common
practice
and
common
experience
once
we
have
them
fully
designated,
then
we
can
go
through
the
full
funding
process
and
make
final
determinations
of
where
those
sources
of
funding
are
going
to
come
from
there.
There
are
a
few
projects
that
the
city
is
the
sole
funder
on,
but
when
we
do
have
those
projects,
those
move
much
quickly
when
we
have
to
go
to
the
state
to
get
funding,
usually
there's
a
pipe
in
a
queue
of
funding
projects,
and
they
have
to
go
back
to
the
state.
D
B
Actually
have
the
total
development
cost
to
be
twelve
million
seven
hundred
thousand
and
change
again.
That's
the
preliminary
budget.
That's
been
proposed
by
the
developer
that
we
anticipate
recommending
for
tentative
designation,
subject
to
change
based
on
the
developer
that
and
ultimately
is
selected
and
their
final
budgets.
Okay,
but
that's
the
current
project
cost
and.
D
Miss
me
well
I'd
love
some
follow-up
to
discuss
the
ownership
opportunities
in
general,
especially
in
affordable
buildings
or
projects
that
our
CDC's
are
running
I'm
curious.
Is
there
any
room
to
really
have
a
robust
discussion
of
rent
own
and
how
folks
can
really
get
on
a
on
a
pathway
to
ownership
in
an
alternative
way?
It's
not
being
discussed
enough.
D
I've
just
feel
like
there's
a
special
mission
that
CDC's
have
when
it
comes
to
developing
a
neighborhood
and
economic
equity
that
traditionally
developers
don't
have
also
we've
seen
the
many
studies
on
the
racial
wealth
gap
and
I.
Think
ownership
is
directly
connected
to
the
ability
to
access
wealth
and
to
pass
it
down.
Generationally.
A
lot
of
people
cannot
still
even
in
an
affordable
units,
come
up
with
a
down
payment
right.
D
B
A
A
B
Standard
policy
for
the
Department
of
Development
is
for
all
of
our
projects
to
be
LEED
certifiable.
We
don't
require
that
they
actually
go
through
the
certification
process,
because
that's
an
additional
amount
of
money
that
doesn't
really
change
what's
actually
being
built.
It
just
essentially
buys
a
plaque,
but
we
do
make
sure
that
they
are
built
to
the
same
certifiable
standards.
So
that's
one
thing
that.
B
A
Mean
is
there
any
opportunity
to
or
I
would
be
curious
as
to,
if
you've
done
any
cost-benefit
analysis
of
bumping
up
the
standards.
There
I
mean
I've
again,
I'm,
just
learning
more
and
now
two
months
into
my
chairmanship
of
this
community
committee,
but
I'm
told
that
lead
actually
not
the
most
rigorous
anyway
and
you
know
there's
certain
systems
and
we
have
to
have
some
way
of
judging.
But
if
there
are
more
aggressive,
more
protective
standards,
we
could
reach
for
right.
B
As
you
mentioned,
it's
like
it's
a
cost-benefit
analysis
right
trying
to
make
sure
that
we
are
creating
as
many
units
of
housing
as
we
need,
while
at
the
same
time
being
respectful
to
the
environment
and
taking
the
future
into
consideration.
So
right
now
the
department
has
settled
on
the
LEED
Silver,
it's
not
to
say.