Chestnut Hill Approval Highlights Need for Regional Transportation Coordination

At the end of May, Brookline Town Meeting approved the Chestnut Hill Commercial Overlay District, a zoning framework for the Route 9 area in Chestnut Hill near the Newton border. The approval also authorized the Select Board to enter into a Memorandum of Agreement and tax certainty agreement with City Realty for the proposed redevelopment of the Chestnut Hill Office Park at 1280–1330 Boylston Street. The project is expected to include three buildings of seven, 12, and 14 stories, with a 200-room hotel, 266 apartments and condos, retail, restaurants, and medical office space.

Why This Approval Matters

The vote is striking because major mixed-use redevelopment proposals often face long, uncertain local approval processes, especially when they involve height, density, and transportation concerns. In this case, Town Meeting approved the zoning by a wide margin, giving the area a clearer planning framework after roughly two years of discussion and revision. It is also exciting because the project could transform a mostly vacant office park into a more active mixed-use district while adding housing, commercial activity, and new tax revenue.

Construction Won’t Begin Immediately, Obviously

The Town Meeting vote was a major step, but it was not the final development approval. The town still anticipates receiving a formal development application from City Realty, which will begin the public review process under Brookline’s development review procedures. Additional permitting, design review, and implementation steps will still need to occur before construction can begin.

Transportation Planning Will Be Critical

For a project of this scale to succeed, transportation planning will need to move in parallel with development review. The area sits along Route 9, an already over-pressured roadway serving a wide variety of local and regional demands. Brookline’s own planning materials point to the need for multimodal safety and capacity improvements, including work that supports walking, biking, transit access, and safer movement through the corridor.

Planned Next Steps

Brookline says its next focus will be intergovernmental coordination. Brookline and Newton are expected to establish a formal working group to plan and advance Route 9 multimodal safety and capacity improvements in partnership with MassDOT. Brookline planning staff will also work with local boards on affordability guidelines tied to the overlay’s housing bonus provisions. Together, these steps will help determine how the zoning approval turns into a workable, connected mixed-use district.

Here at 128 Business Council, we are excited to watch how Brookline, Newton, and MassDOT coordinate around a project with transportation impacts that will extend well beyond municipal lines.

Read more: Brookline’s June Newsletter | Brookline.News | Bisnow