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Dorchester parking lot to become ten-unit apartment building

Dorchester parking lot to become ten-unit apartment building

Built World Boston, MA local

Zoning board grants variances for height, density, and a 13-space parking supply against the required 15

Yesterday: Zoning board approves Neponset Avenue apartments

Overview

Updated 1 hour ago

A Dorchester parking lot across from McGonagle's bar is set to become a four-story, ten-unit apartment building. The Boston Zoning Board of Appeal approved the plan unanimously Tuesday, granting variances for height, density, setback, and fewer parking spaces than the rules require.

Owner Paul Adamson kept the lot after selling the building that now houses McGonagle's; he also won approval to end its use as the bar's parking. Two of the ten two-bedroom units must rent to households earning no more than 60% of the Boston area median income.

Why it matters

One ten-unit building won't fix Boston's housing shortage, but it's another transit-served surface lot converted to housing — and another parking variance granted.

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Key Indicators

10
Apartment units approved
Four-story building with all two-bedroom units.
13
Parking spaces
Zoning requires 15 for ten apartments; the board allowed 13.
2
Affordable units
Rented to households at no more than 60% of Boston area median income.
4
Building stories
Taller than the lot's zoning allows; a variance was granted.

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People Involved

Organizations Involved

Timeline

1 event Latest: Yesterday
  1. Zoning board approves Neponset Avenue apartments

    Latest Regulatory approval

    Board unanimously approved a ten-unit building on the Neponset Ave. lot and ended its use as McGonagle's parking.

Scenarios

1

Ten-unit building rises on Neponset Avenue

Likely Resolves by End of 2029

Discussed by: Boston Inspectional Services Department permit and occupancy records

Adamson pulls a building permit and construction proceeds to completion. The board's unanimous approval removes the main zoning hurdles, and the two affordable units satisfy the city's inclusionary requirement, leaving financing and construction as the remaining steps.

2

Project stalls before construction

Possible Resolves by Sep 22, 2028

Discussed by: Streetsblog's tracking of approved Boston projects that never start

Financing or market conditions stall the project, and no building permit is ever pulled. Boston has a track record of approved developments sitting unbuilt for years, so approval does not guarantee shovels in the ground.

3

Abutters appeal zoning approval to court

Unlikely Resolves by Oct 31, 2026

Discussed by: Suffolk Superior Court docket

A neighboring property owner, concerned about the building's closer-than-allowed setback, files an appeal of the Zoning Board of Appeal decision in Suffolk Superior Court within the statutory 20-day window. The appeal would pause construction pending litigation. No opposition appeared at the board hearing, so this is a low-probability path.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

2019

Perfect Fit parking study (2019)

The Metropolitan Area Planning Council surveyed parking use at new residential buildings across Boston and its suburbs and found developers were building more parking than residents used. The report concluded excess parking raised housing costs and cut transit ridership.

Then

The study gave planners evidence to contest parking minimums project by project.

Now

It helped push Boston toward looser parking requirements and fewer spots per unit in new zoning changes.

Why this matters now

This project's variance allowing 13 spaces where 15 were required reflects the same shift the study urged.

2020

Northampton Street Residences (2020)

Planners proposed replacing a surface parking lot in Roxbury, one block from the Massachusetts Avenue Orange Line station, with a six-story building of 47 affordable homes and no on-site parking. Boston approved the project that year.

Then

The project won approval but did not begin construction for years.

Now

It became a case study in both the promise and the delays of parking-lot-to-housing conversions.

Why this matters now

It is the same pattern as Neponset Avenue: a transit-adjacent surface lot making way for housing, with parking kept to a minimum — and no guarantee the building actually gets built.

Sources

(3)

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