No wonder people are upset at the affordability changes proposed for the 43-unit apartment building at 3326 Washington St. The new owner is proposing substantial changes to the affordability requirements that were part and parcel of the project's original approvals. He's shuffling the affordability costs for four units onto taxpayer subsidy, and is funding a buyout for three units at a level that would not cover the cost of building those new units elsewhere.

With three affordable units left in the project, his proposal does not come close to meeting the affordability level required in Plan JP/ROX (the City's recent planning process), or in the current City-wide affordability requirement of 17 percent, or even in the pre-2023 affordability level of 13 percent.

I'd like to see this project get built – a lot of time and effort went into its original plan – but the change in affordability is drastic.

The new owner should make a better offer.

Advertisement

Sincerely,

Carolyn Royce Jamaica Plain, MA. 02130