Image courtesy of Heffner Architects
A state Land Court judge ordered Boston officials to reconsider a housing development in Hyde Park that’s been unable to win approval since 2021, despite complying with zoning.
Willow Bridge Property Co. of Waltham is entitled to “an expeditious review” of the 204-unit 990 American Legion Highway project, Judge Kevin Smith ruled.
Attorneys for the development team said the ruling could set a precedent in placing limits on the Boston Planning & Development Agency’s discretionary powers to review projects that comply with zoning.
“This is the first time to our knowledge that a Boston Article 80 case on an as-of-right project, brought under this seldom-used statute, received a judgment from the Court,” Kelly Frey, lead litigator for Mintz, said in a statement.
The development team claimed that the BPDA held the project in “administrative limbo” without bringing it to the agency’s board for a vote, and sued the agency in May 2024.
Willow Bridge Property Co. partnered with land owner Jubilee Christian Church on plans to develop nine apartment buildings on the 14-acre former quarry at 990 American Legion Highway in Hyde Park.
Willow Bridge initially submitted its development plans to the BPDA for a 270-unit project in 2021. BPDA staff objected to the designs. A 2021 scoping determination stated the project “proposes clear-cutting a largely forested site and replacing the existing urban wilds with a gated community. On an environmental scale, the design is exacerbating the urban heat island effect, increasing storm-water run-off, and reducing the urban canopy in a neighborhood that is an environmental justice area with largely communities of color.”
In 2023, the developers criticized a “lengthy and disjointed review process” that delayed approval, in submitting an additional 604-page document addressing public comments.
The project was proposed as-of-right, meaning that it conforms with the local zoning regulations, but still required approval under Boston’s Article 80 zoning for development projects over 50,000 square feet. The property is located within a zoning district that allows multifamily housing as-of-right if no units are located on the first floor.
In his ruling, Smith said the BPDA has a right to study a project’s impacts on the surrounding neighborhood and city resources to identify mitigation and identify mitigation. But the agency cannot “deny an Adequacy Determination absent a finding that some aspect of the project presents a problem for which the BPDA can devise no form of reasonable conditions to adequately address the problem,” the ruling stated.
Willow Bridge resubmitted the final plans last week. The ruling gives the BPDA a 30-day window to determine if additional information is required for it to complete the review.
The BPDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The site is part of a 24-acre property acquired by the Mattapan congregation in 1999 and 2001. Jubilee Christian Church plans to use the proceeds from the sale of the property to expand youth and adult programs, according to a statement.
