BPDA Board of Directors, March 19, 2026
Approved: Office-to-Residential Conversion at 280-300 Washington Street
What happened
On March 19, 2026, Boston approved Office-to-Residential Conversion at 280-300 Washington Street.
The BPDA Board approved the largest office-to-residential conversion project to date at 280-300 Washington Street in downtown Boston, creating 255 residential units including 52 affordable units through the Downtown Residential Conversion Incentive Pilot Program.
- Jurisdiction
- Boston, MA
- Date
- March 19, 2026
- Decisions
- 15 zoning decisions
- Outcome
- Approved
Free sample: decision 1 of 15
Office-to-Residential Conversion at 280-300 Washington Street
Approved scoping determination waiving further review for conversion of 11-story office building (Old South Building, constructed 1902-1904) into 255 residential rental units with 52 affordable units (20% of total). Project by 249 Washington Street Owner LLC includes 22 compact studios, 105 studios, 19 compact one-bedrooms, and 32 two-bedrooms. Approved PILOT agreement providing average 75% tax abatement for 29 years.
- Must comply with ADA standards with 13 Group 2 accessible units and 12 voluntary Group 1 units; 44 IZ units at 60% AMI and 8 HUD voucher units required
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Key Decisions (15)
Office-to-Residential Conversion at 280-300 Washington Street
Public Hearing Scheduled for Longwood Place Phase One
Public Hearing Scheduled for Harvard University IMP Amendment
Urban College of Boston Lease Amendment at 2 Boylston Street
Excel CDL Training Contract for Climate Jobs Alliance
New England Tractor Trailer Training School Contract
National Park Service License Agreement for Charlestown Navy Yard
Crosstown Center Hotel LLC Ground Lease Amendment
Arborist Services Contract Extension with Maltby and Company
Downtown Waterfront Landscaping Contract with Northeast Weather Services
M Nevis Site Maintenance Contract Amendment
Zoning Code Text Amendment for Clerical Errors
Chapter 91 License Notification for Seaport Square Block G
Olmstead Village Smart Growth Development Plan Second Amendment
69 A Street Third Notice of Project Change
Full write-ups and conditions for all 15 decisions in Pro.
Development Activity (8)
280-300 Washington Street (Old South Building)
Residential
Longwood Place Phase One
Other
Harvard University IMP Amendment
Other
5 additional development records with full detail in Pro.
Market Signals (5)
Commercial Demand
Class B office market has softened significantly, prompting BPDA to…
Housing Demand
Downtown office-to-residential conversion program has now created 1,700 units of…
Commercial Demand
Life science development at Charlestown Navy Yard Building 108 is…
2 additional market signals with full detail in Pro.
Meeting audio
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Zoning terms (11)
72 recorded timestamps
- industrial (4 timestamps)
- commercial (6 timestamps)
- comprehensive plan (2 timestamps)
- public hearing (2 timestamps)
- zoning (21 timestamps)
- approved (10 timestamps)
Decision moments (15)
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15 recorded decisions, 6 conditions across 6 decisions. Available full write-ups are included with Pro for Boston.
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