Number 406 South Huntington Avenue is probably the most centrally located new development in Jamaica Plain: around it is the Whole Foods, the Connolly Branch of the Boston Public Library, JP Auto Services, JP Laundromat Center, a 7-11, CVS, an Ethiopian restaurant, retail cannabis and Bus 39; to say nothing of Mann & Rogers Funeral Home across the street.

Frank Schillace of Lochstead Street proposes a five-story, 48-unit apartment house to replace the long vacant one-story building built in 1928 as a parking garage.

Schillace, his attorney Richard Lynds, and architect Monte French gave a presentation to the Jamaica Plain Housing Committee (JPHC) on March 17.

Lynds is no stranger to the area’s dynamics; he was the attorney for the contentious 561 Centre St. development.

French – a South End architect – was the architect for 3171 Washington St. condos, the ground floor of which is the office of Egleston Square Main Streets.

Lynds explained what is apparently a new city process: “early engagement.”

“Article 80 requires early meetings before filing,” he said, “to understand the concerns and issues and to hear from the neighborhood.”

Reportedly Schillace has made at least a brief presentation to the JP Centre-South Main Streets.

According to Michael Reiskind in a message to The Bulletin on March16, 406 South Huntington was “purchased by a local resident Frank Schillace who has been looking at it a long time.”

“He has been in touch with both the design team and economic vitality team at Centre South for several months.”

Perhaps learning from the fireworks around 561 Centre St., Lynds seemed cautious.

“I want to caution people,” he said. “This is a work in progress. Very, very, very early step to understand the uses, the urban planning principals on a main thoroughfare.”

Lynds said it was a small project review with eight units set aside as affordable at 60-to-70-percent area median income (AMI).

There will be 10 at-grade parking spaces at the rear of the building.

Lynds went through all 11 of the zoning categories one by one although the building needs only two variances.

French described his building on a long corner with Barbara Street a few yards from the Whole Foods parking lot.

Essentially a long box with corner inset balconies facing South Huntington, it fits almost the whole 11,000-square-foot site directly behind JP Auto Services.

“Right now we’re studying the maximum build-out of the site,” French said. “We’re following the scale and rhythm of Barbara Street.”

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The ground floor will have three apartments, the lobby entry and parking access.

Most of the apartments, 31 of them, are one bedroom units; the rest two bedrooms.

There followed the almost automatic reactions – at least historically – at housing committee reviews about height and affordability.

Bernie Doherty and Alcurtis Clark objected to five stories; they wanted a four-story building.

“I’m very concerned about the height,” Doherty said, apparently forgetting that South Huntington Avenue is a wide boulevard with five-story buildings.

Kathy Brown disagreed.

“I’m totally fine with the height, it fits in pretty well,” she said adding, as she almost always does at housing committee reviews, that she wanted higher affordability.

Clark wanted a four-story building with more three bedroom units.

Sarah Horsley wanted more “family sized units with more deeply affordable units.” She suggested 25 percent of the units to be below 60 percent AMI.

Lynds said he has “heard the same thing all around the city. Do more. Deeper AMI. Right now we’re at 60 percent.”

“We’re at the very early stage, continuing engagement with elected officials and applicable community groups,” Lynds concluded.

“No filing yet,” Lynds said. “We’ll look at all your suggestions and see what we can do, and explain to you if we can’t.”

“Hope to be back later,” he said.