Community and public input on any part of the process is always welcome. You can share your thoughts or feedback by submitting your comments through the form below, or by emailing your community engagement manager at: [email protected]

Latest Updates

Code of Conduct

Past Engagement

Latest Updates

PLAN: East Boston updated Final Drafts and accompanying Zoning Amendments - January 10, 2024

The formal comment period associated with the plan closed on December 23, 2023. A final version of the plan and accompanying Zoning Amendments are available below. PLAN: East Boston will be on the Agenda at the next BPDA Board Meeting, Thursday, January 18, for potential adoption.


The BPDA is excited to announce the release of draft zoning amendments to implement PLAN: East Boston. The Draft Zoning Amendments implement the land use and built form recommendations from PLAN: East Boston, simplify and improve the readability zoning text, and establish new zoning maps. Please use the links below to access the Draft Zoning Amendment(s) and Draft Zoning Map(s), as well as a fact sheet providing an overview of the zoning changes proposed.

Draft PLAN: East Boston Zoning Amendments 

The BPDA is excited to announce the release of draft zoning amendments to implement PLAN: East Boston. The Draft Zoning Amendments implement the land use and built form recommendations from PLAN: East Boston, simplify and improve the readability zoning text, and establish new zoning maps. Please use the links below to access the Draft Zoning Amendment(s) and Draft Zoning Map(s), as well as a fact sheet providing an overview of the zoning changes proposed.

December Update

September Release


View Public Comments (updated 12/01/2023) on the PLAN: East Boston Draft. 

View Public Comments on the Draft Recommendations for the PLAN: East Boston Neighborhood Residential Areas.


PLAN: East Boston offers the opportunity to imagine the future of an entire neighborhood, and respond boldly to the challenges it faces today. Guided by Imagine Boston 2030 and several city-wide strategic plans, PLAN: East Boston will produce a framework to predictably shape the future of East Boston, and identify opportunities to preserve, enhance, and grow.

PLAN: East Boston is a neighborhood planning initiative. Organized by the Boston Planning & Development Agency (BPDA) in partnership with several City agencies, PLAN: East Boston relies on the participation of the East Boston community to be both meaningful and sustainable.

To learn more about neighborhood planning including who participates and why it’s important to get involved, please watch this short video!

BPDA 101 For PLAN: East Boston (English)

BPDA 101 por PLAN: East Boston (Español)

Following 2 years of engagement with the East Boston community, the BPDA has prepared draft recommendations for public review. Recommendations are organized by character area and are focused on

  • update neighborhood zoning and establish neighborhood design guidelines,
  • and propose new capital improvements to public space including near- and long-term improvements to the neighborhood’s transportation network.

Draft recommendations build on feedback collected at many events including community workshops and open houses, “chat with a planner” events, neighborhood walking tours, advisory group meetings, and comments received via email and the project website.

On Thursday, May 20, 2021, the BPDA hosted a virtual event to share draft Recommendations for Squares and Corridors. 

The BPDA will host a community workshop focusing on draft recommendations for Neighborhood Residential Areas on Wednesday October 19, 2022

Additional Information

Community Engagement

Most Recent

Updates to PLAN: East Boston - Community Meeting

Thursday, December 7, 2023

Presentation


Actualizaciones del PLAN: East Boston - Reunión Comunitaria en Español

Wednesday, December 6, 2023

Presentación     


PLAN: East Boston Advisory Group Meeting

Wednesday, November 08, 2023


Reunión Comunitaria en Español (Spanish-Language Meeting) - PLAN: East Boston Borrador Revelado

Monday, October 2, 2023


PLAN: East Boston Virtual Office Hours
September 26, 2023 from 12:00 PM–1:00 PM & 6:00 PM–7:00 PM


PLAN: East Boston Draft Release
September 12, 2023

BPDA planning staff presented the public release of the complete draft of East Boston Tomorrow, the final report of the PLAN: East Boston planning initiative.

The report includes proposed changes to East Boston’s zoning article and new capital improvements to public space, including near- and long-term improvements to the neighborhood’s transportation network. The event included a high-level summary of the report and information about early implementation actions, including draft changes to East Boston’s zoning, Article 53. This event initiated a 30-day comment period for the report and proposed zoning amendments.


BPDA planning staff hosted a series of community meetings to preview draft recommendations for the Waterfront and Evolving Industrial Areas.

Reunión Comunitaria en Español - el Frente Costero & las Áreas Industriales en Desarrollo de Chelsea Creek
August 16, 2023

Presentación | Grabación


Community Meeting (English) Waterfront & Evolving Industrial Areas - Chelsea Creek
August 9, 2023

Presentation | Recording | Chat


Reunión Comunitaria en Español - el Frente Costero & las Áreas Industriales en Desarrollo del Inner Harbor
August 1, 2023

Presentación | Grabación


Community Meeting (English) Waterfront & Evolving Industrial Areas - Inner Harbor
July 18, 2023

Presentation | Recording


Advisory Group Meeting
June 29, 2023

Presentation


Reunión Comunitaria en Español
jueves, 25 de mayo de 2023
Thursday, May 25, 2023

Presentación | Grabación


Neighborhood Residential Workshop
March 2, 2023

Presentation | Recording | Chat Transcript


Advisory Group Meeting
February 8, 2023

Presentation | Recording


Reunión Comunitaria en Español (Spanish-Language Meeting)
January 24, 2023

A community meeting in Spanish to preview draft recommendations for Neighborhood Residential areas.

A una reunión pública en español para una vista preliminar de las recomendaciones provisorias para las Áreas Residenciales del vecindario.

Presentación | Grabación


Neighborhood Residential Workshop
October 19, 2022

Members of the planning team previewed draft recommendations for Neighborhood Residential areas. This event was part of PLAN: East Boston, a long-range neighborhood-wide planning initiative that, when complete, will update neighborhood zoning, establish neighborhood design guidelines, and propose new capital improvements to public space, including near- and long-term improvements to the neighborhood’s transportation network.

Presentation | Recording


Community engagement launched in September 2018 and has three major phases.

Establishing Existing Conditions

The first 18 months of the initiative focused on establishing existing conditions, using publicly-available data and deep local knowledge to document the neighborhood as it exists today.

East Boston Today - English
East Boston Hoy - Español

Community engagement during this phase was organized around high-level planning themes across the geography of the entire neighborhood.

Identifying Challenges and Opportunities

Community engagement during this phase introduced the concept of neighborhood character areas. Character areas are types of places in the neighborhood. Buildings, streets, and public spaces within a given character area share similar uses and physical features. East Boston can be thought of as having three distinct character areas. This phase of the planning initiative focused on identifying the unique challenges and opportunities present in each character area.

Imagining the Future

Citywide strategic plans help set high-level planning goals for the future of the neighborhood. PLAN: East Boston is guided by five goals:

  • Housing - Expand access to housing options that are affordable, stable, and able to meet households needs as they change over time.
  • Climate and Environment - Advance climate preparedness and promote a healthy environment.
  • Transportation - Ensure access to travel choices that connect all parts of the neighborhood to all parts of the city both safely and reliably.
  • Jobs and Economy - Support neighborhood economies that meet the needs of local communities as well as regional industries.
  • Urban Form - Guide neighborhood growth that is predictable and contextual and contributes to a public realm that is active and connected.

This phase of the planning initiative will focus on developing the specific strategies and actions for achieving these goals. This phase of the planning initiative will use feedback collected to date to inform:

  • Draft zoning and design guideline recommendations
  • Draft public realm improvements including streets, sidewalks, plazas and open space.

Character Areas

Character areas are types of places in the neighborhood. Buildings, streets, and public spaces within a given character area share similar uses and physical features. East Boston can be thought of as having three distinct character areas. While high-level planning goals are shared across all three character areas, specific strategies and actions are tailored to each.

View a map of Neighborhood Character Areas

  • Squares and Corridors
  • Neighborhood Residential Areas (Releasing October, 2022)
  • Waterfront and Evolving Industrial (coming soon)

Planning Efforts related to PLAN: East Boston

PLAN: East Boston Advisory Group

The Advisory Group is composed of twenty members of the East Boston community and six ex-officio members. Members of the committee were nominated by the community and appointed by Mayor Martin J. Walsh. The group is charged with guiding the overall planning initiative, including both the process and its outcomes. PLAN: East Boston would not be possible without the generous contribution of time and insight by these participants.

Advisory Group Members

Name Affiliation(s)

Debra Cave

Eagle Hill Civic Association, President

Mary Cole

Jeffries Point Civic Association, Board Member

Friends of East Boston Greenway, Member

Ernani DeAraujo

Eagle Hill Civic Association, Member

East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, VP Regulatory Affairs

East Boston YMCA, Board Member

Frank Delmuto

Harborview Neighborhood Association, Member

Frank Delmuto Architecture, Principal Architect

Margaret Farmer

Jeffries Point Neighborhood Association, Past-President

East Boston Chamber of Commerce, Board Member

Ana Gonzalez

Consulate of El Salvador

Tanya Hahnel

Jeffries Point, Resident

Traggorth Development, Project Manager

Lisa Jacobson

Jeffries Point, Resident

Barr Foundation, Program Manager

Jim Kearney

Orient Heights, Resident

East Boston Chamber of Commerce, Vice President

Charlie LoGrasso

Eagle Hill Civic Association, Member

East Boston Museum & Historical Society, Vice Chair

Theresa Malionek

Gove Street Citizens Association, President

Nicole Olivera

Orient Heights, Resident

Community Activist

Kathy Orlando

Orient Heights, Resident

East Boston Girls Softball, President

Sulprizio Real Estate, Realtor

Sarah Plowman

Orient Heights Civic Association, Secretary

City of Boston, Office of Emergency Management, Regional Planner

Angel Rodriguez

Maverick Central Neighborhood, Resident

Commonwealth Of Massachusetts, House of Representatives, Chief of Staff to House Committee on Public Service, Jerald Parisella

Casey Silvia

Jeffries Point, Resident

Commonwealth Of Massachusetts, Assistant District Attorney

Kannan Thiruvengadam

Jeffries Point, Resident

Eastie Farm, Founder

Friends of East Boston Greenway, Member

Thomson Vou

Maverick Central Neighborhood Association, Treasurer

Boston Water and Sewer Commission, IT Project Manager

John Walkey

Greenroots, Waterfront Initiative Coordinator

Eagle Hill, Resident

Luz Zambrano

Jeffries Point, Resident

Center to Support Immigrant Organizing, Co-Director

Ex-officio Advisory Group Members

Name

State Senator Lydia Edwards

State Representative Adrian Madaro

District City Councilor Gabriela "Gigi" Coletta

At-Large City Councilor Michael Flaherty

At-Large City Councilor Erin Murphy

At-Large City Councilor Ruthzee Louijuene

At-Large City Councilor Julia Mejia

Documents All Documents »

Share Your Thoughts

We want to hear from you! All questions, comments and ideas are welcome. Comments are received and reviewed by members of the PLAN: East Boston team.

To submit a comment in a language besides English, please email [email protected].
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