Image courtesy of City Realty Group
After reducing the project size last year in an attempt to appease neighbors, developer City Realty Group will pursue approval of a 738-unit development in Brookline under the state’s Chapter 40B zoning law.
The latest version calls for a pair of 12-story buildings totaling 540 apartments and two 7-story buildings containing another 243 apartments. A hotel-condo tower in the original proposal has been eliminated.
City Realty Group began meeting with Brookline officials and residents after acquiring the 5.3-acre office park on Route 9 in 2023 for $41 million. Known as Chestnut Hill Office Park, it includes four buildings totaling 120,000 square feet at 1280-1330 Boylston St.
“It’s clear to anyone driving by that a suburban office park is not the best use for a location of this caliber,” Managing Partner Fred Starikov said in a statement.
The mixed-use development proposal was redesigned and reduced in size following a series of meetings with town officials and residents. Earlier versions included building heights ranging from 12 to 20 stories, and uses including a hotel-condominium tower, medical offices and senior housing. In 2024, City Realty reduced the tallest building’s height to 16 stories and reduced the number of senior living units.
To qualify for approval of a comprehensive permit under Chapter 40B, 25 percent of the units would be reserved for households earning a maximum 80 percent of area median income.
Since 2023, an appointed town advisory group has been studying updated zoning for the Route 9 corridor, which contains some of Brookline’s largest commercial properties and potential development sites.
Residents objected to the height of the City Realty Group proposal, prompting City Realty Group to redesign the project in 2024.
This week, the developer indicated that its patience with the town’s deliberative process is wearing thin.
“Some neighborhood opposition has led to repeated delays and shifting priorities for the rezoning process, raising serious doubts about when this rezoning will take place and whether significant development will be possible when it does. The absence of a clear timeline and urgency to deliver a zoning plan that allows for a feasible development has driven City Realty to explore all available options for the property, including the opportunity to develop the property through the 40B process,” developers said in a statement.
Northern Bank and Trust provided a $49.5 million mortgage for the property in May 2024, according to data compiled by The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.
City Realty Group submitted project eligibility letters to the Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency this month. If approved by the agency, the project would go to the Brookline Zoning Board of Appeals for review of the comprehensive permit.
The buildings would contain a mix of housing units from studios to 3-bedroom, City Realty Group announced.
