BOSTON The Boston Redevelopment Authority approved eight development projects valued at more than $401 million last week, including Related Beal's $220-million plan, considered the largest affordable-workforce housing project to be built in the city in the last 25 years.

The project in the Bull Finch Triangle neighborhood will be developed on Parcels 1B and 1 C, formerly “The Merano” project) and will feature 239 rental units that will be priced for households earning between 30% and 165% of median income. Parcel 1C, which Related Beal acquired from an affiliate of Boston Development Group at the end of 2014, is currently used as a surface parking lot.

Vice President Ted Lubitz, Related Beal's head of affordable housing, says of the BRA's approval, “We are looking forward to delivering downtown Boston's first large scale 100% affordable and workforce housing project in 25 years. Our company has a long-term staunch commitment to affordable housing and is eager to create more diverse opportunities for individuals and families that want to live in Boston.”

A spokesperson for Related Beal, a division of Related Companies, says construction on the project is expected to begin by December of this year. The project is expected to create 318 new construction jobs.

The mixed-use project, designed by CBT Architects to be LEED Silver certifiable, will also include a 220-key hotel and 10,000 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor. A 220-space parking garage served by valet operators available to tenants and guests will also be part of the project.

Related Beal was designated the developer of Parcel 1B by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation at the end of 2014. The firm submitted its plan to the BRA back in April. With its BRA approval, Related Beal has agreed to make a $500,000 contribution to design and build a new park. Several hundred thousand dollars will be dedicated to other infrastructure improvements in the neighborhood, the BRA states. In addition to meet the project's linkage obligations, the developer will contribute more than $467,000 to the Neighborhood Housing Trust and more than $93,500 to the Neighborhood Jobs Trust.

Related Beal is seeking a 121A tax agreement to help finance a portion the project and to offset the high cost of land and construction downtown, the BRA notes.

The eight approved projects represent $401.6 million worth of investment in Boston's economy and are expected to create a total of 695 construction jobs. The 471,000 square feet of approved residential projects will produce a total of 413 new units of housing towards Mayor Martin Walsh's goal of creating 53,000 units of housing in the city by 2030.

Another significant project that received the BRA's stamp of approval was National Development's $50-million AC Hotel project at the South End. The six-story 200-room hotel on Albany Street will be developed adjacent to the Ink Block.

Other projects to receive a green light from the BRA include a $25-million plan to redevelop a former industrial site in Egelston Square into 76 residential units and nearly 4,500 square feet of ground-floor retail space at 3200 Washington St. in Jamaica Plain; a $30-million project by South Boston's Artists for Humanity to triple the capacity of its existing facility by adding 57,00 square feet to its EpiCenter; and a $14.1-million independent living facility in Dorchester being developed by The Boston Home. The project, known as Harmon Apartments and named for The Boston Home's founder Cordelia Harmon, will be a mixed-income, four-story building with 36 residential rental units and 21 off-street parking spaces built on its campus. The developer will seek public funding so that 26 of the units can be made available to households earning up to 60% of area median income and four of the units can be made available to households earning up to 30% of area median income. The other six units will be market-rate. The Boston Home plans to begin construction on the venture next year, according to the BRA.

The BRA also said it supports a $14.5-million low-income housing project in Dorchester. The Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corp.'s Four Corners Plaza project will be an entirely affordable development with 31 rental units and 9,200 square feet of commercial space. The project is comprised of two buildings, one of which will contain 28 units and the commercial space, while the second building will consist of three townhouses. The developer plans to begin construction on the project in 2017.

An $18-million plan to redevelop a former gas station site at 1650 Commonwealth Ave. in Brighton into 40 condominiums was approved by the BRA. The five-story development will also feature 2,400 square feet of retail space and a fitness center. Construction is expected to begin in late fall, and the developer hopes to complete the project by the summer of 2016. The agency also approved $30-million worth of improvements to athletic facilities at the Roxbury Latin School's campus in West Roxbury.