BPDA Downtown Office Conversion
Description
As a subconsultant to HR&A, Utile completed a comprehensive office-conversion feasibility analysis of downtown Boston, focused primarily on residential (and hotel) conversions. Completed in early 2023, the study informed HR&A’s policy recommendations to the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA), and in July 2023, the City implemented a tax abatement incentive to promote office-to-residential conversions. Utilizing this policy incentive, several properties have already applied and been approved for said conversions.
Utile’s conversion feasibility analysis is predicated on examining the width of existing buildings (as they relate to viable residential typologies) and access to window walls (via identifying the presence of party walls).
In terms of methodology, Utile used GIS-based tax assessor’s data to identify all office buildings in the downtown study area. A 3D model of downtown was created and planimetric cuts of all office buildings were taken at roughly 40ft above grade to create a map showing only typical floor plates, which were then laid out in a matrix to study their widths and adjacency to party walls, if any. Buildings deemed viable for residential conversion were noted and new maps were generated that filtered for only said buildings.
