The Allston Civic Association (ACA) met last week in a virtual format with a somewhat light agenda.

“Some people like that, some people really don’t,” said ACA President Tony D’Isidoro.

But one issue discussed may raise an eyebrow. Development Attorney Joseph Hanley brought a brand new proposal for 1200 Soldiers Field Rd., which was previously part of a planning area for a new headquarters for WBZ, approved in 2023.

“WBZ had gone through Article 80 (Boston Planning Large Project Review) to turn the site we’re at now and its adjacent area into its new headquarters,” he said. “And so both of those plans have fallen apart, and Hanley’s client, Jeff Feuerman, has acquired a reduced-sized portion of the site. It’s approximately 18,000 square feet of land.”

Hanley said Feuerman is now looking to put 53 new rental residential units into the building. He said right now they have not brought this to the Boston Planning Department and suggestions are on the table.

“This is the first time we’re really showing anyone this; we have not had a pre-file meeting with Planning and we’re excited to just start a discussion here,” he said.

Most of the ACA members on the call were in favor of the proposal, if a bit hesitant.

“We have a large number of renters, and home ownership is dwindling with every new development,” said member Tom Lally. “Have you considered doing condos here? Has that been remotely considered? It would be a lot more desirable to the community if they were condos, which means people would stay in the neighborhood.”

“You can’t make the numbers work at all, financially,” said Feuerman. “They just don’t work on these projects right now, just the way the rates are and what’s happening. There are a lot of projects just not doing well in the newer buildings, and I just can’t see how today’s economic world would be viable for doing condos here. I always keep it in the back of my head, and I always build units that are condo quality.”

Hanley said he didn’t feel it would right to promise condos when they couldn’t deliver.

“If we come in and promise, Tom, ‘Yeah we’re going to do condos,’ and then come back, then that’s not fair either,” he said, referencing several other Allston and Brighton Projects that have nixed much of their condos and/or affordable units recently because of the economic conditions.

Member Bruce Kline asked for increased stormwater drainage protections, and said he sees a lot of untreated runoff – that’s polluted water – go from the buildings on Soldiers Field Road to the Charles River, leading in some instances to toxic algae blooms in the summer.

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“Wastewater is definitely going into the river, bacteria counts are way up,” he said. “There is a tremendous amount of runoff into the river from all this development.”

Member Sarah Iwany asked for one somewhat uncommon improvement: a splash of color.

“It is white, grey and tan,” she said. “Can we have some color of the rainbow, built into any new building in this neighborhood? It’s so boring!”

In other news, Boston Police D-14 Community Service Officer Edward McMahon said the neighborhood has been relatively quiet in terms of crime lately – two aggravated assaults, zero commercial burglaries, and three residential burglaries (one arrest) – but that residents should really consider locking their car doors.

“Last month we had one larceny from a motor vehicle in all of Allston, but in the last two weeks we had nine car breaks, and so it’s spiking up again,” he said.

In a refrain that can be heard from community service officers throughout the city, McMahon said many times these are crimes of opportunity, and that the car door, when the car is broken into, has simply been left open [unlocked].

“There were a couple of smashed windows, but mainly they’re opening doors, so we just warn neighbors to take your belongings in and lock your cars,” he said.

He added that if you do leave your valuables in the car, at least try to keep them out of sight.

“People are leaving credit cards and wallets and pocketbooks and more in their cars,” he said. “Bring all that stuff in. If you’re going to leave coats or anything of value in the car, put them in the trunk.”