Community panel presses BPDA, council for stronger anti‑displacement measures in Squares and Streets rezoning

Councilor Julia Mejia convened the Boston City Council Committee on Post Audit, Government Accountability, Transparency, and Accessibility on Jan. 21 to take community testimony and question city planners about the BPDA Squares and Streets rezoning initiative and its effect on neighborhoods including Roslindale, Fields Corner, Mattapan and Dorchester.

The hearing concentrated on two themes: residents’ reports that outreach has missed people most at risk of displacement, and repeated calls for clear, enforceable anti‑displacement measures before rezoning moves forward in high‑risk areas. “I think…squares and streets will lead to increased displacement of our current residents,” said Wheezy Waldstein, a Jamaica Plain resident and member of Action for Equity, recounting steep assessment increases and recent new construction nearby. Danielle Summer Quieta, lead affirmatively furthering fair housing consultant for Boston Tenant Coalition, told the committee: “If we simply build, build, build without concern for the community process or a better anti‑displacement protections, we will inevitably find that we have built a system of displacement, segregation, and injustice.”

Why it matters: advocates…