BOSTON — When City Hall picks winners, insiders win big. The Boston Planning & Development Agency has handed Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley’s husband, Conan Harris, a multimillion-dollar luxury megaproject, flipping BWSC parking lots into a private payday.

Developer documents list Harris as a Partner & Investor in DREAM Development, the firm selected by the BPDA to co-develop the 400-unit project with Related Beal. The official BPDA press release confirms the designation.

Mayor Michelle Wu painted it as a civic victory: “This critical designation moves us forward to turn parking lots into housing that addresses residents’ needs. We look forward to partnering closely with Related Beal and DREAM Development to ensure the community’s vision for this critical development is realized.”

But abutters tell a different story. “They basically step by step crammed this down the community who opposes it,” one insider told Mass Daily News. “And the BPDA and Zoning Board rubber stamp it without addressing community concerns. Probably due to who the developer is.”

That same insider also blasted the plan to carve out supportive housing units for formerly homeless residents directly across from one of Boston’s open-air drug markets, saying: “It’s further concentrating the crisis.”

Public land, private fortune

The city greased the skids with a Planned Development Area overlay, sidestepping normal zoning and pushing the project through. For residents, it was proof the fix was in: public land flipped, community voices cast aside.

The developer roster itself underscores the insider nature of the deal. Alongside Harris is John Barros, former Chief of Economic Development for the City of Boston under Mayor Walsh. Both men once worked in and around City Hall — now they sit on the private side of a public land payday.

And Harris isn’t just window dressing. As a Partner & Investor, he shares in the upside — profits from a project worth hundreds of millions. That makes him a direct beneficiary of a city deal his firm landed.

Earlier this month, the NY Post revealed the Pressley household already claims up to $8 million in assets, including a $1.1 million Martha’s Vineyard home. Add in the BWSC megaproject, and the family fortune only gets bigger.

From prison to penthouses

For Harris, the trajectory is remarkable: a decade in prison for drug trafficking, a stint at City Hall, a consulting career — and now a luxury developer’s seat on a multimillion-dollar project.

For neighbors, it looks like the community was cut out. For Wu, it was a “public good.” For Pressley’s household? Another jackpot — set to make a fortune.