Following the blockbuster commitment of $30 million from the City, the developers of the mixed-income Bunker Hill Housing development are ready to start meeting with the community ahead of their official City filings.
Boston Housing Authority (BHA) Director Bill McGonagle said they have scheduled meetings this month with BHA residents and with the general community regarding the revised development plans.
“We’re looking forward to getting the public review process rolling and getting construction started on what we think is a long-anticipated re-development of the public housing community,” he said on Tuesday. “I think it’s pretty much accepted in the neighborhood that the status quo is not acceptable. We’re ready to roll out the latest plan, getting in the ground and getting this thing built.”
McGonagle said they have scheduled a meeting with BHA tenants for May 23.
Beyond that, on May 29, they plan to have a meeting with the general community – the first in many months – to talk about some of the first designs and ideas for Bunker Hill 2.0.
“That meeting will be an update on what has happened and there will be some designs to share and we’ll push the Leggat McCall folks out to explain the vision they have for the public housing community,” he said. “I think we’ve been at this four or five years and we’re anxious to get the public review process underway and get into the ground.”
He said times and locations for the meetings will be coming soon. He also said that after the meetings are completed, the development team would file their official notices with the City and the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) – which triggers meetings for the public review and triggers the beginning of the Impact Advisory Group (IAG) process.
McGonagle also emphasized how critical it was, and historic, for Mayor Martin Walsh to pledge $30 million towards the project.
“It was a huge announcement and the mayor deserve credit for stepping up to the plate,” he said. “It’s the first time in the 82-year history of the BHA that the City has contributed funds to the organization. That made all of this financially feasible. Without the Mayor’s commitment, we would not be able to begin to push out this process and anticipate a groundbreaking.”