Seek the Determination First
On most Boston fire files the sequence is: assess the building, decide the route, then deal with permits. In Roxbury it is worth inverting that, because the demolition review can close off the clearance route entirely and it costs little to find out.
An application goes to Inspectional Services and is transmitted to the Boston Landmarks Commission. Staff have 10 calendar days from a complete application to determine whether the building is significant. A "not significant" letter clears the way and no further Article 85 process applies. A significance finding brings a public community meeting, a hearing at which you must present alternatives to demolition, and up to 90 days of delay after that hearing closes. The statewide layer is on our page covering Massachusetts certificates, claims and excise.
Why Seek an Article 85 Determination Before Deciding Anything?
A "Not Significant" Letter Is Worth Money
Some of the housing here dates from the 1840s and 1850s, with heavy expansion through the 1920s. Every building 50 years or older falls within Article 85. The c.148 §26F smoke certificate applies to buildings of 1 to 5 units built before 1 January 1975, and the §26F½ carbon monoxide certificate applies regardless of age, with alarms required on each level and within 10 feet of bedrooms. Inspection fees are set by each municipality, and the deeds excise is collected at the Registry of Deeds on recording. Photoelectric alarms have been required within 20 feet of kitchens and bathrooms since 2010.
This is the part owners rarely think about. A determination letter is transferable in practical terms: it goes with the property and a buyer can present it at Inspectional Services when applying for a demolition permit.
Which means an owner who has obtained one is selling something a buyer would otherwise have to obtain themselves, at a risk they would otherwise discount for. On a property where clearance is a plausible route, that letter is one of the cheapest things a seller can do to firm up a number.
Does the Determination Expire or Transfer?
We publish no figures for Article 85 application fees or current processing times. Both are set by the city and both change. The Landmarks Commission's online portal is the source, and the application itself is straightforward.
Mixed Construction Means Mixed Answers
Roxbury holds both masonry and wood frame building, sometimes on the same street. As elsewhere in the city, that determines whether a fire leaves a usable shell. Masonry frequently does and it is the most valuable thing remaining. Frame rarely does once fire reaches the framing.
Combined with the review question, that produces four possible positions rather than two: a masonry building found not significant, which restores or clears easily; a masonry building found significant, where restoration is clearly right; a frame building found not significant, where clearance is straightforward; and a frame building found significant, which is the hardest case and the one most worth taking advice on.
Roxbury in Context
The neighbourhood where larger Victorians attract significance findings for architectural rather than historic reasons is covered on our page about an area of larger frame houses and Victorians. Where masonry and frame sit side by side without the same review pressure, see our page for a mix of brick rows and frame three-families.
Roxbury Questions
How Do I Apply for a Determination?
Through the Boston Landmarks Commission's online portal. Paper and email applications are no longer accepted, and staff respond within 10 calendar days of marking an application complete.
My Building Is Significant. Can I Ever Demolish It?
Yes. The delay is a delay rather than a prohibition, and where the Commission finds no feasible alternative it may authorise the permit before the 90 days expire. It is a timeline problem, not a permanent bar.
Will You Buy Without a Determination in Place?
Yes, though the uncertainty affects the figure. If you obtain one first, tell us, because it tightens the number.