The auto body shop property at the center of the development project near Shawmut Station. (Photo by Bruce Mohl)

OVER THE COURSE of several years, plans to develop the Shawmut Station site on Centre Street in Dorchester have gone through several phases. Developer Trinity Financial has shrunk its original behemoth, but the project on the site of an auto body shop is still far too big for this neighborhood. Even worse, it will limit the ability of Epiphany School, which has achieved great success for decades, from growing and serving even more kids. 

There is no question Dorchester needs more transit-oriented, affordable housing. However, it is this particular site that is not right for a mega-dense development.  Trinity developed two other large projects nearby, but both were next to Ashmont Station, which sits on a wider street with greater density.

This project needs to be right-sized.

While Trinity seemingly stands ready to break ground on its super-sized, 72-unit apartment building in 2024, a coalition called Build Together already has a more appropriate plan in place that will create 32 affordable housing units that will provide residents a pathway to homeownership. This alternative plan also provides space for our school to expand and better meet its mission.

The Boston Planning and Development Agency has permitted Trinity’s project, but there is an appeals process under law, and we plan to use it.

The Epiphany School next to Shawmut Station. (Photo by Bruce Mohl)

Epiphany serves about 150 families, mostly from Roxbury and Dorchester; every child gets a full scholarship, and last school year, in just nine months, our students made 1.5 years of progress in reading, 1.7 years in language arts, and 2.4 years in math. We want to continue to build on that success.

The school is at capacity and we envision using a portion of the auto body shop parcel to build an addition to our school, including varied academic uses, that will enable us to serve more children.

Build Together’s coalition includes many different people and organizations who support a housing development that will benefit all stakeholders without harming the neighborhood, and over 1,000 have signed on in support.

Let’s be very clear: Neither Epiphany School nor other members of Build Together are opposed to affordable housing or diversity. We feel every day the need for more affordable housing. We are here in Dorchester because this is a great place to live, and we want more people to join us.

The question, though, is do the children served by our school need to lose out on future opportunities? With the Build Together plan, both our kids and the region’s housing needs come out winners.

Moreover, this plan can better meet the neighborhood’s goals for several reasons.

First, the Epiphany School already owns the parking lot that abuts the auto body lot, and thus if we develop the lot we have more room to work with and can create a structure that is more in line with neighboring buildings.

Second, we already have donated funds to deploy and are eager to play a role in creating a building where 100 percent of the units will be considered affordable, and all will have a pathway to homeownership.

Third, unlike Trinity, our school is not seeking to earn a profit on this deal. In fact, because it is established as a nonprofit, Epiphany can apply for housing grants and tax-deductible donations for the rightsized housing project and its own expansion.

Trinity has built several successful housing developments in Boston and is poised to continue addressing Boston’s affordable housing shortage. The company is an important part of the region’s affordable housing development ecosystem, and we value its role. 

For this site and this neighborhood, however, Trinity’s plan is simply too big. A rightsized alternative is what this neighborhood and its residents really need.  Our community will benefit from it as will our school.

John F. Kennedy is a member of the board of trustees of the Epiphany School and a retired lecturer at the MIT Center for Real Estate.