OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT VISION

Roslindale Village Main Street is an economic development non-profit. We achieve our vision of economic development through a variety of methods including business support programs to ensure a vibrant commercial district, events to bring our community together and circulate foot traffic throughout the neighborhood, and beautification projects to ensure everyone can enjoy the open spaces our neighborhood provides.

​

As the need for more housing, particularly in transit-accessible urban squares has become more acute in the Metro Boston area, our Board of Directors created a set of guiding principles to assert our values and place our vision for community development in a broader context:

​​​

• New housing that grows density: RVMS supports the development of new housing within the business district as essential to the health of the businesses, with the knowledge that density creates foot traffic to sustainably support our small businesses for the long term.

• Affordable and mixed income housing: RVMS supports meeting or exceeding affordable housing needs, in particular mixed income housing which promotes a diverse community. RVMS acknowledges that Roslindale is below targets compared to other Boston neighborhoods.

• Multimodal transportation: RVMS encourages developers to support multimodal transportation infrastructure and improvements which serve the neighborhood as a whole and provide a affordable options for a mix of transportation needs

• Design that promotes public life: RVMS supports designs which contribute to an active and safe streetscape promoting a vibrant and engaging pedestrian and commercial environment. 

• Mixed use developments: RVMS generally supports projects that incorporate mixed use developments that have both housing and commercial options that are open to the public to create a lively and safe 18-hour commercial district. 

• Independent and small businesses: RVMS supports an environment that ensures small businesses can thrive through key components such as affordable rent and well cared for spaces. This will allow our small businesses to grow in Roslindale and preserve current business owners.

• Community-focused teams behind developments: RVMS supports development teams that have a track record of community-minded building design processes and implementation.

• Opportunities for education and growth: RVMS supports childcare, schooling, and continuing education for all ages to ensure that Roslindale is a neighborhood for all residents to grow. 

​

The RVMS Board submitted the following letter of recommendations to the BPDA on September 18, 2024 to help articulate our vision for a successful Squares and Streets planning initiative in our community.