--- type: "firecrawl-provider" description: "City of Boston building and land-use records from Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov), the city's CKAN open data portal, published by the Inspectional Services Department (ISD) under the ODC Public Domain Dedication and License: Approved Building Permits (about 667,000 permits issued since 2006, reloaded daily), the Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker (appeals of refused permits, hearings and decisions) and Building and Property Violations. Search permits by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor), permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation or 10-digit parcel id, newest or largest first; read one permit by number; rank applicants by permits and valuation for a window; find zoning appeals by address, permit, hearing or decision day; and find code-enforcement violations by address, property or date. Every response and record carries the licence and a source URL. The permits dataset has no application date or row update time, so new permits are polled with issued_since." use_when: "City of Boston building and land-use records from Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov), the city's CKAN open data portal, published by the Inspectional Services Department (ISD) under the ODC Public Domain Dedication and License: Approved Building Permits (about 667,000 permits issued since 2006, reloaded daily), the Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker (appeals of refused permits, hearings and decisions) and Building and Property Violations. Search permits by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor), permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation or 10-digit parcel id, newest or largest first; read one permit by number; rank applicants by permits and valuation for a window; find zoning appeals by address, permit, hearing or decision day; and find code-enforcement violations by address, property or date. Every response and record carries the licence and a source URL. The permits dataset has no application date or row update time, so new permits are polled with issued_since.\n\nCity of Boston building and land-use records from Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov), the city's CKAN open data portal, published by the Inspectional Services Department (ISD) under the ODC Public Domain Dedication and License: Approved Building Permits (about 667,000 permits issued since 2006, reloaded daily), the Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker (appeals of refused permits, hearings and decisions) and Building and Property Violations. Search permits by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor), permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation or 10-digit parcel id, newest or largest first; read one permit by number; rank applicants by permits and valuation for a window; find zoning appeals by address, permit, hearing or decision day; and find code-enforcement violations by address, property or date. Every response and record carries the licence and a source URL. The permits dataset has no application date or row update time, so new permits are polled with issued_since.\n\nCity of Boston building and land-use records from Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov), the city's CKAN open data portal, published by the Inspectional Services Department (ISD) under the ODC Public Domain Dedication and License: Approved Building Permits (about 667,000 permits issued since 2006, reloaded daily), the Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker (appeals of refused permits, hearings and decisions) and Building and Property Violations. Search permits by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor), permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation or 10-digit parcel id, newest or largest first; read one permit by number; rank applicants by permits and valuation for a window; find zoning appeals by address, permit, hearing or decision day; and find code-enforcement violations by address, property or date. Every response and record carries the licence and a source URL. The permits dataset has no application date or row update time, so new permits are polled with issued_since." categories: "Real estate" capabilities: 5 credits_per_call: 5 --- # Analyze Boston: building permits, zoning appeals and violations (data.boston.gov) on Firecrawl Alexandria City of Boston building and land-use records from Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov), the city's CKAN open data portal, published by the Inspectional Services Department (ISD) under the ODC Public Domain Dedication and License: Approved Building Permits (about 667,000 permits issued since 2006, reloaded daily), the Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker (appeals of refused permits, hearings and decisions) and Building and Property Violations. Search permits by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor), permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation or 10-digit parcel id, newest or largest first; read one permit by number; rank applicants by permits and valuation for a window; find zoning appeals by address, permit, hearing or decision day; and find code-enforcement violations by address, property or date. Every response and record carries the licence and a source URL. The permits dataset has no application date or row update time, so new permits are polled with issued_since. - Categories: Real estate - Category index: [Real estate category](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/categories/real-estate) - Provider key: `data-boston-gov` - Access: Firecrawl credits - Cost: 5 credits per call ## More - [Human guide](https://www.firecrawl.dev/app/alexandria/data-boston-gov) - [OpenAPI spec](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/openapi.json) ## Capabilities - [Contractor activity](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/building-permits/contractor_activity): Rank Boston permit applicants (the person or company ISD lists as applicant on each permit, often the contractor of record) by permits issued in an issue-date window, or by total declared valuation, from one grouped query over Approved Building Permits. Optional applicant substring, permit or work type and ZIP. Names group case-insensitively; spelling variants of one firm stay separate rows. Each row has permits, total valuation, distinct parcels, first and last issue days, a source_url listing those permits, and the licence. - [Get permit](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/building-permits/get_permit): One City of Boston approved building permit by permit number (E1843433, ERT1719099): the shared permit fields with every applicant ISD lists for it, the Permit Finder link, source_url, licence, and raw, the permit's datastore row with every published column (work type code, total fees, ward, state-plane coordinates). The dataset holds issued permits only, so an unknown number or an application still in review is not_found. - [Search permits](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/building-permits/search_permits): Search City of Boston approved building permits (ISD's Approved Building Permits on data.boston.gov: issued permits since 2006, reloaded daily) by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor) name, permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation and 10-digit parcel id; newest issued first, or largest declared valuation first. Each record has the shared permit fields (number, type, occupancy class, work subtype, scope of work, status, issued and expiry dates, address, coordinates, parcel id, valuation, applicants), the Permit Finder link, source_url and licence. ISD publishes one row per applicant, so a permit's rows are merged into one record within a page; the cursor counts rows. An empty page is a valid result. - [Search violations](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/code-violations/search_violations): Search Boston building and property violations issued by inspectors of ISD's Building and Structures Division (Analyze Boston dataset Building and Property Violations): case number, status (Open, Closed), status day, code section and description (Failure to Obtain Permit, Unsafe and Dangerous, Maintenance), and the property's address, ZIP, ward, property id and coordinates. Filter by address, ZIP, neighborhood, property id, case number, violation text or code section, status and status-day window; newest status first. One row per violation, so a case with several violations repeats. The contact's mailing address in the source is not returned. An empty page is a valid result. - [Search zoning appeals](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/zoning-appeals/search_zoning_appeals): Search Boston Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA) cases from ISD's Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker on data.boston.gov: appeals filed when a permit application is refused under the zoning or building code, with the parent permit application number, address, zoning district, contact, project description, submitted, received, hearing, decision and closed days, deferrals, status and decision. Filter by address, ZIP, neighborhood, zoning district, appeal type, status, decision, contact, parent permit number, appeal number, and received, hearing or decision day windows; newest received first by default. One row per appeal and parent application, so an appeal covering several applications repeats. An empty page is a valid result. ## 1. Choose this provider when City of Boston building and land-use records from Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov), the city's CKAN open data portal, published by the Inspectional Services Department (ISD) under the ODC Public Domain Dedication and License: Approved Building Permits (about 667,000 permits issued since 2006, reloaded daily), the Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker (appeals of refused permits, hearings and decisions) and Building and Property Violations. Search permits by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor), permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation or 10-digit parcel id, newest or largest first; read one permit by number; rank applicants by permits and valuation for a window; find zoning appeals by address, permit, hearing or decision day; and find code-enforcement violations by address, property or date. Every response and record carries the licence and a source URL. The permits dataset has no application date or row update time, so new permits are polled with issued_since. City of Boston building and land-use records from Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov), the city's CKAN open data portal, published by the Inspectional Services Department (ISD) under the ODC Public Domain Dedication and License: Approved Building Permits (about 667,000 permits issued since 2006, reloaded daily), the Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker (appeals of refused permits, hearings and decisions) and Building and Property Violations. Search permits by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor), permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation or 10-digit parcel id, newest or largest first; read one permit by number; rank applicants by permits and valuation for a window; find zoning appeals by address, permit, hearing or decision day; and find code-enforcement violations by address, property or date. Every response and record carries the licence and a source URL. The permits dataset has no application date or row update time, so new permits are polled with issued_since. City of Boston building and land-use records from Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov), the city's CKAN open data portal, published by the Inspectional Services Department (ISD) under the ODC Public Domain Dedication and License: Approved Building Permits (about 667,000 permits issued since 2006, reloaded daily), the Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker (appeals of refused permits, hearings and decisions) and Building and Property Violations. Search permits by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor), permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation or 10-digit parcel id, newest or largest first; read one permit by number; rank applicants by permits and valuation for a window; find zoning appeals by address, permit, hearing or decision day; and find code-enforcement violations by address, property or date. Every response and record carries the licence and a source URL. The permits dataset has no application date or row update time, so new permits are polled with issued_since. ## 2. Minimal request Call `POST https://api.firecrawl.dev/v2/scrape` with `{ alexandria: { provider, capability, options } }`. For a batch, send `{ alexandria: [...] }` with up to 10 calls. ```json { "provider": "data-boston-gov", "capability": "building-permits/contractor_activity", "options": { "contractor": "Sunrun", "issued_since": "2025-01-01", "issued_until": "2025-12-31", "limit": 5 } } ``` ## 3. Add provider options Use only the options needed for the task: - `contractor` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the applicant name, to find one contractor's groups. Example: `` - `cursor` (string): next_cursor from the previous page; repeat the same filters with it. Pattern: ^[0-9]+$. Example: `` - `issued_since` (string, required): Count permits issued on or after this day, YYYY-MM-DD (data starts 2006-09-26). Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `issued_until` (string): Count permits issued on or before this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `limit` (number): Rows per page. Example: `25` - `permit_type` (string): Case-insensitive substring over permit type, work type code, work subtype and occupancy type (solar, roof, electrical, erect/new). Example: `` - `sort` (string): permits_desc: most permits first; valuation_desc: largest total declared valuation first. Example: `permits_desc` - `zip` (string): 5-digit ZIP code (02127). Pattern: ^[0-9]{5}$. Example: `` ## 4. Request through your preferred interface ### JavaScript ```javascript const result = await firecrawl.scrape({ alexandria: { provider: "data-boston-gov", capability: "building-permits/contractor_activity", options: { contractor: "Sunrun", issued_since: "2025-01-01", issued_until: "2025-12-31", limit: 5, }, }, }); ``` ### Python ```python result = firecrawl.scrape_alexandria({ "provider": "data-boston-gov", "capability": "building-permits/contractor_activity", "options": { "contractor": "Sunrun", "issued_since": "2025-01-01", "issued_until": "2025-12-31", "limit": 5 } }) ``` ### cURL ```sh curl https://api.firecrawl.dev/v2/scrape \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $FIRECRAWL_API_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ "alexandria": { "provider": "data-boston-gov", "capability": "building-permits/contractor_activity", "options": { "contractor": "Sunrun", "issued_since": "2025-01-01", "issued_until": "2025-12-31", "limit": 5 } } }' ``` ### CLI ```sh firecrawl scrape 'data-boston-gov/building-permits/contractor_activity' \ --options '{"contractor":"Sunrun","issued_since":"2025-01-01","issued_until":"2025-12-31","limit":5}' ``` ### MCP Call the FCX MCP retrieve tool with this object: ```json { "provider": "data-boston-gov", "capability": "building-permits/contractor_activity", "options": { "contractor": "Sunrun", "issued_since": "2025-01-01", "issued_until": "2025-12-31", "limit": 5 } } ``` Ask for only the returned fields needed by the task. ## 5. Full request shape ```json { "provider": "data-boston-gov", "capability": "building-permits/contractor_activity", "options": { "contractor": "Sunrun", "issued_since": "2025-01-01", "issued_until": "2025-12-31", "limit": 5 } } ``` ## 6. Response data The response includes `success`, `provider`, `capability`, `creditsCost` and `data`. This example shows the provider payload in `data`: ```json { "count": 1, "dataset": { "id": "6ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77", "name": "Approved Building Permits", "portal": "data.boston.gov", "updated_at": "2026-10-27T13:43:44Z", "url": "https://data.boston.gov/dataset/approved-building-permits" }, "issued_since": "2025-01-01", "issued_until": "2025-12-31", "jurisdiction": { "county": "Suffolk", "name": "Boston", "state": "MA" }, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "next_cursor": null, "observed_at_ms": 1793145005124, "records": [ { "first_issued_date": "2025-01-02", "last_issued_date": "2025-12-11", "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "name": "Sunrun Installation Services", "parcels": 226, "permits": 335, "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search_sql?sql=SELECT+permitnumber%2C+worktype%2C+permittypedescr%2C+description%2C+comments%2C+applicant%2C+declared_valuation%2C+total_fees%2C+issued_date%2C+expiration_date%2C+status%2C+occupancytype%2C+sq_feet%2C+address%2C+city%2C+state%2C+zip%2C+ward%2C+property_id%2C+parcel_id%2C+gpsy%2C+gpsx%2C+y_latitude%2C+x_longitude+FROM+%226ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77%22+WHERE+applicant+ILIKE+%27Sunrun+Installation+Services%27+AND+issued_date+%3E%3D+%272025-01-01%27+AND+issued_date+%3C%3D+%272025-12-31T23%3A59%3A59.999999%27+ORDER+BY+issued_date+DESC%2C+permitnumber+LIMIT+100", "total_valuation_usd": 12770168.75 } ], "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search_sql?sql=SELECT+max%28applicant%29+AS+applicant%2C+count%28DISTINCT+permitnumber%29+AS+permits%2C+sum%28CASE+WHEN+declared_valuation+%7E+%27%5E-%3F%5B%24%5D%3F%5B0-9%2C%5D%2B%28%5B.%5D%5B0-9%5D%2B%29%3F%24%27+THEN+CAST%28replace%28replace%28declared_valuation%2C+%27%24%27%2C+%27%27%29%2C+%27%2C%27%2C+%27%27%29+AS+numeric%29+END%29+AS+valuation%2C+count%28DISTINCT+parcel_id%29+AS+parcels%2C+min%28issued_date%29+AS+first_issued%2C+max%28issued_date%29+AS+last_issued+FROM+%226ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77%22+WHERE+applicant+IS+NOT+NULL+AND+issued_date+%3E%3D+%272025-01-01%27+AND+issued_date+%3C%3D+%272025-12-31T23%3A59%3A59.999999%27+AND+applicant+ILIKE+%27%25Sunrun%25%27+GROUP+BY+upper%28applicant%29+ORDER+BY+permits+DESC%2C+valuation+DESC+NULLS+LAST%2C+upper%28applicant%29+LIMIT+5" } ``` ## API reference-derived contract The following capability contract is generated from the same normalized Alexandria API reference exposed in the API spec. ### Contractor activity - Capability: `building-permits/contractor_activity` - Description: Rank Boston permit applicants (the person or company ISD lists as applicant on each permit, often the contractor of record) by permits issued in an issue-date window, or by total declared valuation, from one grouped query over Approved Building Permits. Optional applicant substring, permit or work type and ZIP. Names group case-insensitively; spelling variants of one firm stay separate rows. Each row has permits, total valuation, distinct parcels, first and last issue days, a source_url listing those permits, and the licence. - Instructions: Use to find the most active contractors in Boston, a ZIP or a trade (solar, roof, erect) for a period, or to size one contractor's activity; then search_permits with contractor for the permits themselves. - Cost: 5 credits per call - Capability file: [Contractor activity](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/building-permits/contractor_activity) Accepted options: - `contractor` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the applicant name, to find one contractor's groups. Example: `` - `cursor` (string): next_cursor from the previous page; repeat the same filters with it. Pattern: ^[0-9]+$. Example: `` - `issued_since` (string, required): Count permits issued on or after this day, YYYY-MM-DD (data starts 2006-09-26). Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `issued_until` (string): Count permits issued on or before this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `limit` (number): Rows per page. Example: `25` - `permit_type` (string): Case-insensitive substring over permit type, work type code, work subtype and occupancy type (solar, roof, electrical, erect/new). Example: `` - `sort` (string): permits_desc: most permits first; valuation_desc: largest total declared valuation first. Example: `permits_desc` - `zip` (string): 5-digit ZIP code (02127). Pattern: ^[0-9]{5}$. Example: `` Response schema example: ```json { "count": 1, "dataset": { "id": "6ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77", "name": "Approved Building Permits", "portal": "data.boston.gov", "updated_at": "2026-10-27T13:43:44Z", "url": "https://data.boston.gov/dataset/approved-building-permits" }, "issued_since": "2025-01-01", "issued_until": "2025-12-31", "jurisdiction": { "county": "Suffolk", "name": "Boston", "state": "MA" }, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "next_cursor": null, "observed_at_ms": 1793145005124, "records": [ { "first_issued_date": "2025-01-02", "last_issued_date": "2025-12-11", "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "name": "Sunrun Installation Services", "parcels": 226, "permits": 335, "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search_sql?sql=SELECT+permitnumber%2C+worktype%2C+permittypedescr%2C+description%2C+comments%2C+applicant%2C+declared_valuation%2C+total_fees%2C+issued_date%2C+expiration_date%2C+status%2C+occupancytype%2C+sq_feet%2C+address%2C+city%2C+state%2C+zip%2C+ward%2C+property_id%2C+parcel_id%2C+gpsy%2C+gpsx%2C+y_latitude%2C+x_longitude+FROM+%226ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77%22+WHERE+applicant+ILIKE+%27Sunrun+Installation+Services%27+AND+issued_date+%3E%3D+%272025-01-01%27+AND+issued_date+%3C%3D+%272025-12-31T23%3A59%3A59.999999%27+ORDER+BY+issued_date+DESC%2C+permitnumber+LIMIT+100", "total_valuation_usd": 12770168.75 } ], "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search_sql?sql=SELECT+max%28applicant%29+AS+applicant%2C+count%28DISTINCT+permitnumber%29+AS+permits%2C+sum%28CASE+WHEN+declared_valuation+%7E+%27%5E-%3F%5B%24%5D%3F%5B0-9%2C%5D%2B%28%5B.%5D%5B0-9%5D%2B%29%3F%24%27+THEN+CAST%28replace%28replace%28declared_valuation%2C+%27%24%27%2C+%27%27%29%2C+%27%2C%27%2C+%27%27%29+AS+numeric%29+END%29+AS+valuation%2C+count%28DISTINCT+parcel_id%29+AS+parcels%2C+min%28issued_date%29+AS+first_issued%2C+max%28issued_date%29+AS+last_issued+FROM+%226ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77%22+WHERE+applicant+IS+NOT+NULL+AND+issued_date+%3E%3D+%272025-01-01%27+AND+issued_date+%3C%3D+%272025-12-31T23%3A59%3A59.999999%27+AND+applicant+ILIKE+%27%25Sunrun%25%27+GROUP+BY+upper%28applicant%29+ORDER+BY+permits+DESC%2C+valuation+DESC+NULLS+LAST%2C+upper%28applicant%29+LIMIT+5" } ``` ### Get permit - Capability: `building-permits/get_permit` - Description: One City of Boston approved building permit by permit number (E1843433, ERT1719099): the shared permit fields with every applicant ISD lists for it, the Permit Finder link, source_url, licence, and raw, the permit's datastore row with every published column (work type code, total fees, ward, state-plane coordinates). The dataset holds issued permits only, so an unknown number or an application still in review is not_found. - Instructions: After search_permits, or when you have a Boston permit number (also the parent permit number of a zoning appeal), to see every published column. - Cost: 5 credits per call - Capability file: [Get permit](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/building-permits/get_permit) Accepted options: - `permit_number` (string, required): ISD permit number, letters then digits (ERT1719099); case-insensitive. Pattern: ^[A-Za-z0-9]+$. Example: `` Response schema example: ```json { "address": "840 Columbus AV", "applied_date": null, "city": "Boston", "completed_date": null, "contractors": [ { "company": null, "license_number": null, "name": "Joseph Cameron", "phone": null, "role": "applicant" } ], "dataset": { "id": "6ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77", "name": "Approved Building Permits", "portal": "data.boston.gov", "updated_at": "2026-10-27T13:43:44Z", "url": "https://data.boston.gov/dataset/approved-building-permits" }, "description": "Erect a new 23-story, 275 foot tall, 445,366 sf high-rise mixed use student residential tower on newly created 34,064 SF lot. Tower includes 323 suite style dwelling units, containing 1216 beds and approximately 29,000sf of ground floor community-focused uses including restaurant &; retail space with amenity spaces (core/shell). Refer to ALT1744468 for lot consolidation and subdivision. Permanent Declaration of Covenants, Easements and Restrictions to be recorded and maintain proposed fire separation selected by the design professional.;[ePlan] Lobby is core/shell for future fit-out.", "expires_date": null, "housing_units": null, "issued_date": "2025-08-28", "jurisdiction": { "county": "Suffolk", "name": "Boston", "state": "MA" }, "latitude": 42.33584839009263, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "longitude": -71.08777655442123, "observed_at_ms": 1793145004303, "parcel_id": "0902704010", "permit_class": "Multi", "permit_finder_url": "https://permitfinder.boston.gov/permit?id=ERT1719099", "permit_number": "ERT1719099", "permit_type": "Erect/New Construction", "property_id": "437272", "raw": { "address": "840 Columbus AV", "applicant": "Joseph Cameron", "city": "Boston", "comments": "Erect a new 23-story, 275 foot tall, 445,366 sf high-rise mixed use student residential tower on newly created 34,064 SF lot. Tower includes 323 suite style dwelling units, containing 1216 beds and approximately 29,000sf of ground floor community-focused uses including restaurant &; retail space with amenity spaces (core/shell). Refer to ALT1744468 for lot consolidation and subdivision. Permanent Declaration of Covenants, Easements and Restrictions to be recorded and maintain proposed fire separation selected by the design professional.;[ePlan] Lobby is core/shell for future fit-out.", "declared_valuation": "$237,364,095.00", "description": "Erect", "expiration_date": null, "gpsx": "767621.8534653932", "gpsy": "2947681.075367734", "issued_date": "2025-08-28T17:07:18", "occupancytype": "Multi", "parcel_id": "902704010", "permitnumber": "ERT1719099", "permittypedescr": "Erect/New Construction", "property_id": "437272", "sq_feet": "445366", "state": "MA", "status": "Open", "total_fees": "$2,413,160.00", "ward": "9", "worktype": "ERECT", "x_longitude": "-71.08777655442123", "y_latitude": "42.33584839009263", "zip": "02120" }, "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search?resource_id=6ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77&filters=%7B%22permitnumber%22%3A%22ERT1719099%22%7D", "square_feet": 445366, "state": "MA", "status": "Open", "valuation_usd": 237364095, "work_class": "Erect", "zip": "02120" } ``` ### Search permits - Capability: `building-permits/search_permits` - Description: Search City of Boston approved building permits (ISD's Approved Building Permits on data.boston.gov: issued permits since 2006, reloaded daily) by street address, ZIP, neighborhood, applicant (contractor) name, permit or work type, status, issue-date window, minimum declared valuation and 10-digit parcel id; newest issued first, or largest declared valuation first. Each record has the shared permit fields (number, type, occupancy class, work subtype, scope of work, status, issued and expiry dates, address, coordinates, parcel id, valuation, applicants), the Permit Finder link, source_url and licence. ISD publishes one row per applicant, so a permit's rows are merged into one record within a page; the cursor counts rows. An empty page is a valid result. - Instructions: Use for permits at a Boston address or parcel, a contractor's permits, or new permits since a date: pass issued_since (the last day you checked); the dataset has no application date or row update time, and ISD reloads it daily. Then get_permit for every column, search_zoning_appeals with permit_number for a zoning appeal, or search_violations with property_id for code enforcement. - Cost: 5 credits per call - Capability file: [Search permits](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/building-permits/search_permits) Accepted options: - `address` (string): Street line, case-insensitive substring (50 Cromwell Road, 840 Columbus Ave). Text after a comma is ignored; a trailing Street, Avenue, Road, Boulevard, Place and similar becomes ISD's abbreviation (ST, AV, RD, BL, PL). Ranges are written 140-148 Brookline AV, so a number inside a range does not match. Example: `
` - `contractor` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the applicant name (Sunrun, Mellett). Example: `` - `cursor` (string): next_cursor from the previous page; repeat the same filters with it. Pattern: ^[0-9]+$. Example: `` - `issued_since` (string): Only permits issued on or after this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Use the last day you checked to poll for new permits. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `issued_until` (string): Only permits issued on or before this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `limit` (number): Rows per page. Example: `25` - `min_valuation` (number): Only permits whose declared valuation is at least this many USD. Example: `10` - `neighborhood` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the neighborhood or mailing city as published (Dorchester, East Boston, Jamaica Plain); central neighborhoods are mostly written Boston. Example: `` - `parcel_id` (string): Boston parcel id (PID), as in records' parcel_id or the Assessing Department's data (0504219000); exact. Pattern: ^[0-9]{9,10}$. Example: `` - `permit_type` (string): Case-insensitive substring over permit type, work type code, work subtype and occupancy type: short form, electrical, solar, roof, demolition, certificate of occupancy, multi. erect matches every permit with work type ERECT (new building permits, their foundation permits and certificates of occupancy); erect/new matches only the Erect/New Construction permit type. Example: `` - `sort` (string): issued_desc: newest issued first; valuation_desc: largest declared valuation first. Example: `issued_desc` - `status` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the status: open, closed, issued, stop work. Example: `` - `zip` (string): 5-digit ZIP code (02127). Pattern: ^[0-9]{5}$. Example: `` Response schema example: ```json { "count": 1, "dataset": { "id": "6ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77", "name": "Approved Building Permits", "portal": "data.boston.gov", "updated_at": "2026-10-27T13:43:44Z", "url": "https://data.boston.gov/dataset/approved-building-permits" }, "jurisdiction": { "county": "Suffolk", "name": "Boston", "state": "MA" }, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "next_cursor": null, "observed_at_ms": 1793145003170, "records": [ { "address": "840 Columbus AV", "applied_date": null, "city": "Boston", "completed_date": null, "contractors": [ { "company": null, "license_number": null, "name": "Joseph Cameron", "phone": null, "role": "applicant" } ], "description": "Erect a new 23-story, 275 foot tall, 445,366 sf high-rise mixed use student residential tower on newly created 34,064 SF lot. Tower includes 323 suite style dwelling units, containing 1216 beds and approximately 29,000sf of ground floor community-focused uses including restaurant &; retail space with amenity spaces (core/shell). Refer to ALT1744468 for lot consolidation and subdivision. Permanent Declaration of Covenants, Easements and Restrictions to be recorded and maintain proposed fire separation selected by the design professional.;[ePlan] Lobby is core/shell for future fit-out.", "expires_date": null, "housing_units": null, "issued_date": "2025-08-28", "latitude": 42.33584839009263, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "longitude": -71.08777655442123, "parcel_id": "0902704010", "permit_class": "Multi", "permit_finder_url": "https://permitfinder.boston.gov/permit?id=ERT1719099", "permit_number": "ERT1719099", "permit_type": "Erect/New Construction", "property_id": "437272", "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search?resource_id=6ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77&filters=%7B%22permitnumber%22%3A%22ERT1719099%22%7D", "square_feet": 445366, "state": "MA", "status": "Open", "valuation_usd": 237364095, "work_class": "Erect", "zip": "02120" } ], "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search_sql?sql=SELECT+permitnumber%2C+worktype%2C+permittypedescr%2C+description%2C+comments%2C+applicant%2C+declared_valuation%2C+total_fees%2C+issued_date%2C+expiration_date%2C+status%2C+occupancytype%2C+sq_feet%2C+address%2C+city%2C+state%2C+zip%2C+ward%2C+property_id%2C+parcel_id%2C+gpsy%2C+gpsx%2C+y_latitude%2C+x_longitude+FROM+%226ddcd912-32a0-43df-9908-63574f8c7e77%22+WHERE+address+ILIKE+%27%25840+Columbus+AV%25%27+AND+%28permittypedescr+ILIKE+%27%25erect%25%27+OR+worktype+ILIKE+%27%25erect%25%27+OR+description+ILIKE+%27%25erect%25%27+OR+occupancytype+ILIKE+%27%25erect%25%27%29+AND+issued_date+%3E%3D+%272025-01-01%27+AND+issued_date+%3C%3D+%272025-12-31T23%3A59%3A59.999999%27+ORDER+BY+issued_date+DESC%2C+permitnumber%2C+_id+LIMIT+25" } ``` ### Search violations - Capability: `code-violations/search_violations` - Description: Search Boston building and property violations issued by inspectors of ISD's Building and Structures Division (Analyze Boston dataset Building and Property Violations): case number, status (Open, Closed), status day, code section and description (Failure to Obtain Permit, Unsafe and Dangerous, Maintenance), and the property's address, ZIP, ward, property id and coordinates. Filter by address, ZIP, neighborhood, property id, case number, violation text or code section, status and status-day window; newest status first. One row per violation, so a case with several violations repeats. The contact's mailing address in the source is not returned. An empty page is a valid result. - Instructions: Use to check a Boston property's code-enforcement history (address, or property_id from a permit) or to watch new open violations (status open, status_since the last day you checked). - Cost: 5 credits per call - Capability file: [Search violations](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/code-violations/search_violations) Accepted options: - `address` (string): Street line, case-insensitive substring (50 Cromwell Road, 840 Columbus Ave). Text after a comma is ignored; a trailing Street, Avenue, Road, Boulevard, Place and similar becomes ISD's abbreviation (ST, AV, RD, BL, PL). Ranges are written 140-148 Brookline AV, so a number inside a range does not match. Example: `
` - `case_number` (string): ISD case number, exact (V91983). Pattern: ^[A-Za-z0-9]+$. Example: `` - `cursor` (string): next_cursor from the previous page; repeat the same filters with it. Pattern: ^[0-9]+$. Example: `` - `limit` (number): Rows per page. Example: `25` - `neighborhood` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the neighborhood or mailing city (East Boston, Dorchester). Example: `` - `property_id` (string): Boston SAM address id, exact; a permit's property_id (132380). Pattern: ^[0-9]+$. Example: `` - `status` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the status: open or closed. Example: `` - `status_since` (string): Only rows whose status day is on or after this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `status_until` (string): Only rows whose status day is on or before this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `violation` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the violation description or code section (permit, unsafe, 121.2). Example: `` - `zip` (string): 5-digit ZIP code (02127). Pattern: ^[0-9]{5}$. Example: `` Response schema example: ```json { "count": 4, "dataset": { "id": "800a2663-1d6a-46e7-9356-bedb70f5332c", "name": "Building and Property Violations", "portal": "data.boston.gov", "updated_at": "2026-10-27T13:54:00Z", "url": "https://data.boston.gov/dataset/building-and-property-violations1" }, "jurisdiction": { "county": "Suffolk", "name": "Boston", "state": "MA" }, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "next_cursor": null, "observed_at_ms": 1793145006227, "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search_sql?sql=SELECT+case_no%2C+status_dttm%2C+status%2C+code%2C+description%2C+violation_stno%2C+violation_sthigh%2C+violation_street%2C+violation_suffix%2C+violation_city%2C+violation_state%2C+violation_zip%2C+ward%2C+sam_id%2C+latitude%2C+longitude+FROM+%22800a2663-1d6a-46e7-9356-bedb70f5332c%22+WHERE+concat_ws%28%27+%27%2C+violation_stno%2C+violation_street%2C+violation_suffix%29+ILIKE+%27%25302+Sumner+ST%25%27+ORDER+BY+status_dttm+DESC+NULLS+LAST%2C+case_no+DESC%2C+code%2C+_id+LIMIT+25", "violations": [ { "address": "302 Sumner ST", "case_number": "V210646", "city": "East Boston", "code": "104.6", "description": "Right of Entry", "latitude": 42.36767899977675, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "longitude": -71.03658000178699, "property_id": "132380", "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search?resource_id=800a2663-1d6a-46e7-9356-bedb70f5332c&filters=%7B%22case_no%22%3A%22V210646%22%7D", "state": "MA", "status": "Closed", "status_date": "2014-11-18", "ward": "01", "zip": "02128" }, { "address": "302 Sumner ST", "case_number": "V169847", "city": "East Boston", "code": "116.2", "description": "Unsafe and Dangerous", "latitude": 42.36767899977675, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "longitude": -71.03658000178699, "property_id": "132380", "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search?resource_id=800a2663-1d6a-46e7-9356-bedb70f5332c&filters=%7B%22case_no%22%3A%22V169847%22%7D", "state": "MA", "status": "Closed", "status_date": "2013-10-22", "ward": "01", "zip": "02128" }, { "address": "302 Sumner ST", "case_number": "V96110", "city": "East Boston", "code": "104.6", "description": "Right of Entry", "latitude": 42.36767899977675, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "longitude": -71.03658000178699, "property_id": "132380", "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search?resource_id=800a2663-1d6a-46e7-9356-bedb70f5332c&filters=%7B%22case_no%22%3A%22V96110%22%7D", "state": "MA", "status": "Closed", "status_date": "2011-04-14", "ward": "01", "zip": "02128" }, { "address": "302 Sumner ST", "case_number": "V91983", "city": "East Boston", "code": "121.2", "description": "Unsafe and Dangerous", "latitude": 42.36767899977675, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "longitude": -71.03658000178699, "property_id": "132380", "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search?resource_id=800a2663-1d6a-46e7-9356-bedb70f5332c&filters=%7B%22case_no%22%3A%22V91983%22%7D", "state": "MA", "status": "Closed", "status_date": null, "ward": "01", "zip": "02128" } ] } ``` ### Search zoning appeals - Capability: `zoning-appeals/search_zoning_appeals` - Description: Search Boston Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA) cases from ISD's Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker on data.boston.gov: appeals filed when a permit application is refused under the zoning or building code, with the parent permit application number, address, zoning district, contact, project description, submitted, received, hearing, decision and closed days, deferrals, status and decision. Filter by address, ZIP, neighborhood, zoning district, appeal type, status, decision, contact, parent permit number, appeal number, and received, hearing or decision day windows; newest received first by default. One row per appeal and parent application, so an appeal covering several applications repeats. An empty page is a valid result. - Instructions: Use for land-use decisions in Boston: upcoming hearings (hearing_since today, sort hearing_asc), decisions since a day (decided_since, sort decided_desc), new appeals (received_since), or the appeal behind a permit (permit_number). - Cost: 5 credits per call - Capability file: [Search zoning appeals](https://alexandria.firecrawl.dev/agents/providers/data-boston-gov/zoning-appeals/search_zoning_appeals) Accepted options: - `address` (string): Street line, case-insensitive substring (50 Cromwell Road, 840 Columbus Ave). Text after a comma is ignored; a trailing Street, Avenue, Road, Boulevard, Place and similar becomes ISD's abbreviation (ST, AV, RD, BL, PL). Ranges are written 140-148 Brookline AV, so a number inside a range does not match. Example: `
` - `appeal_number` (string): ZBA appeal number, exact (BOA1686634). Pattern: ^[A-Za-z0-9]+$. Example: `` - `appeal_type` (string): Zoning or building code appeal. Example: `zoning` - `contact` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the contact name (often the attorney or architect). Example: `` - `cursor` (string): next_cursor from the previous page; repeat the same filters with it. Pattern: ^[0-9]+$. Example: `` - `decided_since` (string): Only appeals with a final decision on or after this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `decided_until` (string): Only appeals with a final decision on or before this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `decision` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the decision code: approved, appprov, denied, deniedprej, withdraw. app matches both approvals and denied both denials. Example: `` - `hearing_since` (string): Only appeals with a hearing on or after this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `hearing_until` (string): Only appeals with a hearing on or before this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `limit` (number): Rows per page. Example: `25` - `neighborhood` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the neighborhood or mailing city (Dorchester, Jamaica Plain). Example: `` - `permit_number` (string): Parent permit application number, exact (ERT1651415). Pattern: ^[A-Za-z0-9]+$. Example: `` - `received_since` (string): Only appeals received on or after this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `received_until` (string): Only appeals received on or before this day, YYYY-MM-DD. Pattern: ^[0-9]{4}-[0-9]{2}-[0-9]{2}$. Example: `` - `sort` (string): received_desc: newest received first; hearing_desc or hearing_asc by hearing day; decided_desc: newest decision first. Rows without the sort day come last. Example: `received_desc` - `status` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the status: scheduled, concluded, finalized, closed, community process, submitted. Example: `` - `zip` (string): 5-digit ZIP code (02127). Pattern: ^[0-9]{5}$. Example: `` - `zoning_district` (string): Case-insensitive substring of the BPDA zoning district (North End, Roxbury Neighborhood). Example: `` Response schema example: ```json { "appeals": [ { "address": "3390R Washington ST Jamaica Plain 02130", "appeal_number": "BOA1686634", "appeal_type": "Zoning", "city": "Jamaica Plain", "closed_date": "2025-07-04", "contact": "George Morancy, ESQ", "decision": "Approved", "deferrals": 0, "ever_deferred": false, "final_decision_date": "2025-06-13", "hearing_date": "2025-06-03", "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "permit_number": "ERT1651415", "project_description": "Bldg-B. Erect a new 6-story Multi-Family Dwelling with garage at the rear of 3390 Washington St. Building to contain 43 residential units with amenity spaces, roof terrace, solar roof, bike storage and garaged parking. Parking will be at level 1 and below grade, combined with surface parking with no automated parking or lifts. See ALT1664486 for combination of lots and Bldg-A development. [ePlan]LPR", "received_date": "2025-01-30", "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search?resource_id=0f0fa8c2-87ba-45d6-a876-0d177dd02512&filters=%7B%22boa_apno%22%3A%22BOA1686634%22%2C%22parent_apno%22%3A%22ERT1651415%22%7D", "status": "Appeal Closed", "submitted_date": null, "ward": "11", "zip": "02130", "zoning_district": "Jamaica Plain Neighborhood" } ], "count": 1, "dataset": { "id": "0f0fa8c2-87ba-45d6-a876-0d177dd02512", "name": "Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker", "portal": "data.boston.gov", "updated_at": "2026-10-27T13:53:43Z", "url": "https://data.boston.gov/dataset/zoning-board-of-appeal-tracker" }, "jurisdiction": { "county": "Suffolk", "name": "Boston", "state": "MA" }, "license": { "attribution": "City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, via Analyze Boston (data.boston.gov)", "name": "Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and License (PDDL)", "url": "https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1-0/" }, "next_cursor": null, "observed_at_ms": 1793145005628, "source_url": "https://data.boston.gov/api/3/action/datastore_search_sql?sql=SELECT+address%2C+status%2C+parent_apno%2C+boa_apno%2C+appeal_type%2C+contact%2C+submitted_date%2C+received_date%2C+hearing_date%2C+ever_deferred%2C+num_deferrals%2C+final_decision_date%2C+decision%2C+closed_date%2C+city%2C+zip%2C+ward%2C+zoning_district%2C+project_description+FROM+%220f0fa8c2-87ba-45d6-a876-0d177dd02512%22+WHERE+parent_apno+%3D+%27ERT1651415%27+ORDER+BY+received_date+DESC+NULLS+LAST%2C+boa_apno+DESC%2C+parent_apno%2C+_id+LIMIT+25" } ```