Commissioners described a proposed amendment to the Master Development Agreement (MBA) for the Pearl Street lot redevelopment that reduces overall market units while increasing the number of affordable apartments and lowers anticipated city exposure for parking costs.

Planning staff described the amended proposal as a 135‑unit project, about 125 of which would be designated affordable, with a public parking garage of roughly 454 spaces. That contrasts with the existing MBA, which anticipated about 365 dwelling units, two parking garages and a city‑owned garage of roughly 541 spaces. The amended design is intended to reduce the city’s cost while increasing the total number of affordable units, planning staff said.

The developer has proposed a guaranteed maximum cost for the new garage not to exceed about $21 million, and the construction timetable shifted: the earlier MBA anticipated construction beginning in June while the amended plan moved the projected start to November. Commissioners discussed whether the prior 300+ unit scheme included workforce units and recalled the earlier plan had mixed market and workforce components; NeighborWorks had been listed as the developer of at least one building under earlier iterations.

Commissioners said the amendment reduces market‑rate units and expands affordable housing within a smaller, less expensive overall plan. Several commissioners recommended reviewing planning‑board materials and minutes for full details; no formal commission vote on the MBA amendment was recorded in the meeting minutes.

Commissioners also noted the project’s long history, including prior planning board reviews and an earlier RFP when the city sold the Pearl/Hartnett parking lot for redevelopment. The commission asked staff and interested commissioners to review the amended MBA materials on file with Planning & Community Development and to bring any formal questions back to a future meeting.