Beginning on July 1st, 2025, Boston’s amended Zoning Article 37, Green Buildings and Net Zero Carbon standards will apply to projects submitting new Article 80 Small Project Review Applications, and Article 80B Project Notification Forms, and some Notice of Project Change filings. Key amendments include:

• Requirements for Net Zero Carbon (NZC) which limits building operational greenhouse gas emissions to zero for most building use types.
• Lowering the applicability threshold for NZC to include Article 80E Small Projects greater than 20,000 SF or 15 or more residential units.
• Requirements for embodied carbon Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) reporting for Article 80B Large Projects greater than 50,000 SF.

Please review Zoning Article 37, the Climate Change Review Policy, and the guidance below for additional information and specific requirements.

Article 37 Green Buildings & Net Zero Carbon & Climate Change Review

Zoning Article 37 (A37) and the Climate Change Review Policy (Resiliency Policy) ensure that Proposed Projects are designed, constructed, and managed to minimize and mitigate adverse environmental impacts; to promote sustainable development: and to minimize and mitigate the impacts of Greenhouse Gas Emissions.

All Proposed Projects subject to or electing to comply with Large Project Review (80B), Planned Development Area Review (80C), Institutional Master Plan Review (80D), or Small Project Review (80E) of the Zoning Code are subject to Article 37 Green Building and Net Zero Carbon and the Climate Change Review Policy requirements.
 
Article 37 submissions and compliance reviews align with the Article 80 Review process and occur at three project phases:

Initial Filing – included in the Small Project Review Applications, Project Notification Form, or Notice of Project Change filings prior to Board Approval
Design Filing – dedicated filing coinciding with final construction documents prior to Building Permit Issuance, and
Construction Completion Filing – dedicated filing prior to Certificate of Occupancy Issuance.

The Planning Department records A37 compliance with Boston Inspectional Services Department for the issuance of building and occupancy permits.

Submission Guidelines

• Projects subject to Article 80B, 80C, or 80D review must follow the Large Project Submission Guideline.
• Projects subject to Article 80E must follow the Small Project Submission Guideline. 
• All Projects must utilize the Developer Portal to access and complete the Climate Resiliency Checklist (CRC).

Resources

• Embodied Carbon LCA Reference Guide – provides additional descriptions and links to reference standards.
• A37 Carbon Emissions Carbon Calculator – provides key compliance calculations and analysis.

The following documents are provided to guide and assist Development Teams comply with these regulations and policies:     

• A37 Large Project Submission Guideline
• A37 Small Project Submission Guideline
• Embodied Carbon LCA Reporting Instructions

Information

• Large Project Climate Resiliency Checklist v4
• Small Project Climate Resiliency Checklist v4
• Embodied Carbon LCA Reference Guide

Templates

• Net Zero Acknowledgement Letter
• Large Project Affidavit of Design and Construction Compliance
• Small Project Affidavit of Design and Construction Compliance
• Embodied Carbon LCA Microsoft Excel 

Examples

• Large Project Initial Filing (excerpt)
• Large Project Design Filing

Zoning & Policy

• Article 37 Green Buildings and Net Zero Carbon (amended Feb 2025)
• Climate Change Review Policy

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