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.

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With more housing needed in the City of Boston as a whole and continuing development in Roslindale Village under the new Squares and Streets zoning code, our Board of Directors came together to create a list of guiding principles for RVMS to use when evaluating new developments proposed within the Roslindale Village catchment area. This is not in response to any specific past, present, or future proposal, but rather an attempt to clarify and provide transparency as to when and how RVMS evaluates such proposals.

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The economic development vision of RVMS is guided by the following values:

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• 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.