MA: Roslindale plan envisions walkable area that could be replicated across Boston

In Roslindale, a new roadmap for the neighborhood’s commercial center could become the model for a changing landscape throughout Boston.

Last week, the board governing the city’s Planning Department voted to approve a new neighborhood plan for Roslindale Square, paving the way for new zoning there in the near future. The plan is the first of its kind approved under the city’s Squares + Streets program, a zoning overhaul focused on expanding housing and promoting economic development in neighborhood centers outside of downtown.

The localized plan for Roslindale envisions new housing and commercial development, pedestrian-friendly streets, a variety of food and entertainment options and cultural events in the square.

“We’re really excited for not just the opportunity for existing businesses to thrive, but opportunities for new community spaces to open, which would invite more small businesses in,” said Brendan Fogarty, interim executive director of Roslindale Village Main Streets.

Boston’s zoning code is notoriously convoluted, and at 4,000 pages long is 40% longer than that of New York City, which has 13 times the population and six times the land area of the Massachusetts capital. Wu has made the modernization of the zoning code a priority through Squares + Streets and other planning initiatives.

In many cases, restrictive regulations make it virtually impossible for would-be residential or commercial developers to build without requesting zoning waivers that require extra rounds of city approvals. This red tape often delays projects by months, increasing costs at a time when construction prices are already soaring.

In April, the city adopted the Squares + Streets zoning amendment, which includes six new district types that can be applied in individual neighborhoods. These districts range from “transition residential,” primarily residential areas on the edge of high-activity squares, to “placemaker,” in the hearts of local business districts, usually close to public transit.

While the regulations for each district vary, they all have the goal of making it easier to build denser housing as well as commercial space to increase foot traffic and create vibrant, walkable neighborhoods.

“Our neighborhood businesses really thrive when we have more foot traffic, so having more residents living in very close proximity to the square is really going to get us to that dynamic,” Fogarty said. “In the absence of that foot traffic, that’s where you see it becoming difficult for small businesses to stick around long-term.”

About

For each Squares + Streets area, city planning staff will meet with community members to create a vision for their neighborhoods, which will be compiled into a “Small Area Plan” like Roslindale Square’s to guide future planning and development. Then, the plan will be used to determine new zoning overlays for each square, applying the six Squares + Streets districts as appropriate.

Currently, only Mattapan has implemented the new districts, according to the city, after going through its own rezoning process last year separate from Squares + Streets.

While two other areas — Cleary Square in Hyde Park and Fields Corner in Dorchester — are currently in the planning process, Roslindale Square’s Small Area Plan is the first approved.

Some community engagement has been started for Codman Square and Four Corners in Dorchester, with the official process expected to launch in 2026. The ongoing Allston-Brighton Community Plan is expected to conclude with new Squares + Streets zoning in that neighborhood.

City officials have said future Squares + Streets initiatives could be targeted to Cleveland Circle, Egleston Square, Forest Hills, Grove Hall, Jamaica Plain Centre, Packard’s Corner, Tremont Street in Mission Hill, Upham’s Corner and West Roxbury Centre, among others, though there has been no update on when those could happen.

The 67-page plan for Roslindale Square includes more than 30 goals for the area, which covers a one-third-mile circle around the intersection of South and Poplar Streets, overlapping the Roslindale Village commuter rail station, Adams Park, Washington Street, Cummins Highway and Belgrade Avenue.

The goals include strategies to increase affordable housing, diversify the types of businesses in the neighborhood to include more cafes and sit-down restaurants and a movie theater or entertainment space, promote public art and offer more community events.

There are also more concrete ideas about Roslindale Square’s streetscape. Washington Street, which is one-way, could be restored to two-way traffic, while Poplar Street could become a “shared street” devoted primarily to pedestrians.

Other suggestions include expanded sidewalks, improved crosswalks, and other pedestrian, cyclist and bus infrastructure.

None of the goals laid out in the plan are guaranteed to be completed but will guide public projects and city approvals of private development in the coming years.

Roslindale business owners concerned about parking

The biggest concern from some residents and business owners in the area is parking.

Russell Flynne Jr., the owner of Wallpaper City, a family-owned paint and wallpaper store that has operated on South Street for decades, said the recent addition of bike and bus lanes on Washington Street has already led to less parking, especially on Saturdays, and in turn, less business.

A previous draft of the plan included a housing development on a Taft Hill municipal parking lot. While the final version did not include this suggestion and specified that any development should prioritize maintaining parking spaces, Flynne said he and some other business owners he has talked to worry that they will be forced out if their customers can’t even make it in the door.

“Roslindale isn’t a destination people are coming down to to shop,” he said. “All that does is push [my customers] up to Home Depot.”

Fogarty said the parking worries are legitimate, given the existing conditions in the square. However, he was optimistic that changing the fabric of the neighborhood would lead to improvements for everyone.

“Neighborhoods like the South End and Jamaica Plain are dynamic not because of their unlimited free parking, but really in spite of their parking challenges,” he said. “You reach a critical mass of [housing] density where many people who don’t need to drive don’t bother because parking is relatively rare, and those that do will park and use that space more efficiently.”

The city is accepting public comments on the draft Roslindale Square zoning map through March 31, after which it will need to be approved by the Boston Planning and Development Agency board and the Boston Zoning Commission.

©2025 Advance Local Media LLC.
Visit masslive.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.