Boston Suburb Set for Transformative Project After Rezoning

Even an executive of City Realty Group was shocked by how easily a rezoning vote sailed through the Brookline annual town meeting last week.

On Thursday, the town approved the Chestnut Hill Commercial Area Study by a 217-20 margin, easily exceeding the needed two-thirds threshold, Bisnow reported. The passage isn’t the final step in the process, but clears the path towards a major development in the Boston suburb.

“I felt pretty good, but I wasn’t expecting it to that extent, certainly,” chief development officer Clifford Kensington told the publication.

City Realty is planning a three-building mixed-use complex on a five-acre site at 1280-13330 Boylston Street. The development will include a 200-room hotel, 266 apartments or condo units, medical office space and retail space.

The project has taken several years to get off the ground. City Realty acquired the site in 2024 for $41 million, roughly a decade after the town identified its importance to development. Delays have stemmed from community opposition and the qualms of the developer of an adjacent parcel, who reached a deal with City Realty weeks prior to the rezoning vote.

The project is expected to generate $5 million in commercial tax revenue annually, according to the developer. City Realty is contributing $11 million to Brookline’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund and $12 million to transportation and public safety.

Construction is expected to begin in 2028, though the developer still needs to wind through the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Agency process and Brookline’s special permit process.

The rezoned area extends past the office park City Realty plans to redevelop, including several underutilized parcels that could welcome more work on the Route 9 corridor. More than 50 percent of the total area will need to be dedicated to commercial usage.

“It’s very encouraging to see that Brookline is finally going to have the opportunity to grow some commercial revenue and have more housing and really help transform this corridor,” Charles River Regional Chamber chief executive officer Greg Reibman told the publication.

— Holden Walter-Warner