BRA to begin Bartlett yard development

For decades dozens of MBTA buses belched diesel exhaust and leaked oil late into the night while waiting for repairs at the Bartlett Street yard.

Within the next two years, the yard could see as many as 400 units of affordable housing developed there. Or a mix of affordable and market-rate housing, retail and light manufacturing.

What developers ultimately build on the MBTA-owned lot depends largely on what community residents decide in a process that will begin Nov. 21 with a community planning meeting sponsored by the Boston Redevelopment Authority.

"We want to go into this with an open mind and look at it with an eye toward housing," said BRA project manager …