A new 50-unit apartment building on Boylston Street could soon welcome residents of all ages — but a proposed rule change has sparked a debate over who the housing was meant for.
Developer Chestnut Hill Investments LLC is asking the Brookline Zoning Board of Appeals to remove the 55-and-older age restriction at 1180 Boylston Street, a six-story mixed-use building with ground-floor retail and underground parking.
The ZBA will hold a virtual public hearing on Wednesday, July 15, at 7 p.m.
The age restriction was part of the building’s original 2017 approval, making the request the project’s fifth major modification.
Supporters and opponents are split over whether the restriction should remain.
Precinct 15 Town Meeting Member Janice Kahn wrote to the ZBA that she found “zero support for this change” among her constituents. She argued that residents backed the project because it was promised as age-restricted housing, pointing to the months of public meetings and years of construction that followed the original approval.
Precinct 17 Town Meeting Member Katherine Haenschen supports opening the building to a wider range of residents. “If seniors are not interested in this building … and young professionals and families are interested, then I don't see any compelling reason why it should remain age-restricted,” she wrote.
The building includes:
- 50 apartments: 15 one-bedroom, 33 two-bedroom, and 2 three-bedroom units
- 10 affordable units reserved for households earning up to 50% of area median income
- 6,509 square feet of retail space
- 70 underground parking spaces
The project sits on the site of a former gas station and is expected to open in summer 2026. The ZBA’s decision could determine who is eligible to move in once leasing begins.
How to participate
- When: Wednesday, July 15, 7 p.m.
- Meeting: Virtual via Zoom (Meeting ID: 165 506 5232)
- Comments: [email protected]
