significantly, and that's why we're here for the height variance. I forgot to mention that. I wanted
And that's why we're here for the height variance.
I forgot to mention that.
I wanted to make sure you.
to make sure you knew that. Also wanted to mention that the commercial space involved with the
current project is triple the Azurite project. All right, so in other words, 8,000 square feet
on the original project, and we're now at 24,000 square feet of, hopefully, restaurant and retail.
So, Mr. Marshall, did you hear my opening presentation today? I did. All right, is it
true and accurate? And do you adopt it as your formal testimony in this matter? I do. All right.
Was I able to well enough summarize the improvements over the as of right project
to the current project? And do you have anything to add? Yes. I mean, the only thing I would add
is that during the initial application, we did work with the local community. They had voiced
some concerns. We had actually made several changes to our first round of CDR. And once it
concluded, we continued those conversations with the community. We realized, you know, we need to
sit down and really, you know, come up with a better solution. There were constraints, obviously,
and that required variances, but it did take some time. And we sat down and, you know, we even hired
a new architect at that direction, really did major fundamental changes to the project. You know,
They gave us a lot of helpful direction and an understanding of being able to work together to make a project that would, you know, this is the cornerstone of Roxborough on the heart of Roxborough and Ridge Avenue.
And I think we really came up with a great project and it's thanks to a lot of their efforts and feedback.
And it's nice to be able, you know, as a developer to work with the community group and come up with something that everyone can be proud of.
And I'm proud of this project because of their efforts and help.
and we're also concurrently with this process we're working on a community benefits agreement
with them as well right correct yeah um all right that's all i have of mr marshall i do want to have
the architect just answer one question and then we can have community speak um the architect is
the architect is lance saunders if he could be the panelist and mr saunders yeah
lance saunders is allowed to speak hi sir could you state your name and spell for the court
stenographer sure lance saunders uh l-a-n-c-e-s-a-u-n-d-e-r-s you swear a firm to tell
the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth yes please proceed mr saunders are you
an architect i'm an architect yes okay and did you prepare the uh did you work on the civic design
review process and the renderings and drawings and plans for the cdr process in this matter
i did um did you agree with the statements that i made did you hear my opening presentation
yes and do you agree with the statements that i made yes okay in your opinion mr sonos can you
explain to the board whether the current project is an improvement over the as of right project
and why just briefly sure yeah i think it's a vast improvement um you know aside from kind of
the the details of parking where you know we're going from 26 surface parking uh spots to 71 cars
underground um if you take into consideration the way we reoriented the building again to kind of
face into the pocket park as you had mentioned we've set the building back more than the required
setbacks on three of the four sides as well um so it's actually 11 feet on the leverington side
to kind of match the the facade of the neighboring buildings and we've set it back an extra five feet
on ridge avenue and on the pocket park side as well to kind of give a little bit more public
space back and then you'll note on the the top floor the fifth floor we've set that floor back
all the way around on four sides so in general we want to be more sympathetic to the neighborhood
we want this to be a more pedestrian friendly building and also something that kind of fits
more um gently into the neighborhood and the urban fabric that that surrounds it right now
especially with the pocket park and would you agree with my statement earlier made that the
the variances that we're requesting today are actually in order to improve the project over
the as of right project as far as impacts on the community yes uh and do you reach that conclusion
within a reasonable degree of professional certainty?
Mr. Chairman, that's all I have.
There are public folks who will want to speak on behalf of the project.
We have-
Well, I'm going to get to that.
I'll get to that, okay?
I'm going to call for the public.
Okay, questions from the board first.
Questions from the board.
No, Chair.
No, Chair.
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
I just wanted to clarify, because just like in the last case, I didn't see this listed on the refusal.
There's commercial space along the 100% of the ground floor frontage in the first 30 feet of building depth, because that's required for CMX 2 and 2.5.
Yeah, I would just suggest that's why there's not a refusal item for that.
um right well normally notes if there's vacant commercial space and then says use permit required
prior to occupancy so um it's just strange that it wasn't it wasn't noted at all because otherwise
it looks like it's just a residential structure so no no that's why yeah it has it's full 30 foot
it goes even greater than 30 foot okay great enough it's all across the front yeah oh thank
you i just wanted to verify that because that should have been listed on the refusal so mr
Chair, as with the previous case, I think if we approve this, you should include a provisor
that just verifies the use registrations required prior to occupancy for vacant commercial
space on the ground floor so that it's clear that there is that vacant commercial space
there.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
Yes, Chair.
I have a hand up from John Carpenter, and I will allow him to speak.
Mr. Carpenter, could you state your name, please, and spell for the sonography?
Yes, my name is John Carpenter, J-O-H-N-C-A-R-P-E-N-T-E-R.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Are you a neighbor?
I am the president of the Central Roxborough Civic Association, the registered RCO, for this project.
Thank you very much. Please proceed.
Thank you.
Chairman Bergman, committee members, and Director Sunkit, thank you so much for the opportunity to speak with you today.
Central Roxborough Civic Association's Zoning Committee worked closely with the developer of
this project over the course of more than a year to redesign the development site
after the approval of a by-right development plan.
We appreciate the developer and his design team's willingness to work with us on this project,
and we also thank Councilman Jones and his staff for their support and encouragement
throughout this process. We are pleased to support the variances requested for this project as they
allow for a project that is far more responsive to neighborhood concerns than the original design.
This project now contains nearly 22,000 square feet of ground floor commercial space that is
well-designed for modern restaurant use and complementary to the adjacent pocket park and
microbrewery. The new design added five, no, added more than 54 parking places in an underground
parking lot it added wider front and side sidewalks for outdoor dining in exchange for a reduction in
the rear yard required that is now a variance before you it included setbacks of the upper
floor to reduce the visual impact of the taller structure and the front of the building on ridge
avenue highlights a residential entrance with 36 additional spaces for for bicycle parking
um crca as the coordinating rco held a special public zoom meeting on november 27th 2023 that
was advertised by both rcos through their newsletters and email lists posters on the
building and social media announcements we had 55 people attending our zoom meeting at which this
project was described and discussed uh we held a vote and 95 of those people present and voting
supported or did not oppose the project, and only 5% of those attending and voting voted to oppose
this project. In a separate meeting of our board of directors a week later, CRCA voted to strongly
support this project's variance before the ZBA. We thank you for your time and consideration of
this project. Thank the developer and his design team again for their extraordinary willingness to
work with us in a thoughtful way and to really bend over backwards by hiring even a new design
design team to really make enormous headway on this project, and thank everyone again
for the work that was put into making this a really remarkable central monument in our
central business district.
So thank you again.
Thank you, sir.
Is there anyone else in the virtual audience?
Yes, Jax Cusack will be allowed to speak.
Hi, sir.
Could you please state your name and spell for the court stenography?
Hi, my name's Jax, J-A-X, Cusack, C-U-S-A-C-K.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Are you a neighbor?
I am the executive director of the Roxbury Development Corporation.
In addition, we, as an organization, own the pocket park and the building directly adjacent to it that has the microbrewery in it,
as well as maintain and lease the parking lot that is behind this project.
as well as maintain and lease the parking lot that is behind this project.
So I just have a quick statement.
I want to start by saying the RDC appreciates the collaborative effort that the developer,
Councilman Jones, CRCA, and community members shared towards this project.
By actively engaging with the community and the RCO representatives, the developer has
demonstrated a commitment to address the needs and concerns of the neighborhood.
In particular, we commend the developer for the thoughtful inclusion of commercial space
that is designed to attract restaurant and hospitality businesses. This type of building
stock is sorely missing from Ridge Avenue and is vital for maintaining a thriving business corridor
in our community. By incorporating this element into the development plans, the development is
helping to enhance the overall economic vitality of the area. And while we were heartbroken when
we learned that we might lose the mural inside the pocket park, we are grateful to the developer
for understanding the significance of public art and incorporating three new murals into their
design. In addition, the decision to create a courtyard that is accessible from and resonates
with our pocket part will only enhance this beloved community hub. By prioritizing the
integration of public art and outdoor space, they are not only keeping in line with the character
of our neighborhood, but also enhancing how business and community members interact at this
location. We are excited to see how these thoughtful design choices will continue to bring life and
vibrancy to our community, and we are thankful to have developers who are open to having conversations
around the project. Overall, we believe the developers' approach to this project reflects
a genuine desire to work in partnership with the community and to create a development that will
benefit both residents and local businesses. We look forward to seeing the positive impact that
this project will have on Ridge Avenue and the surrounding neighbors. And just so you know that
our executive team and our board met and voted unanimously to support this project.
Thank you very much. We appreciate your input. Is there anyone else in the virtual audience?
no more hands planning commission thank you chair bergman and good afternoon david effecta with the
city planning commission chairman and board members the comprehensive plan recommends no
change to the commercial mixed use zoning at this location this proposal completed its civic design
review in february 2024 the civic design review committee's advisory recommendations are not an
expression of the city planning commission's recommendation or opinion regarding zoning
variances, special exceptions, or other discretionary approvals associated with this
proposal. The appellant seeks relief for parking, height, minimum rear yard depth,
and the minimum number of allowable dwelling units. Considering the scale, location, and split zoning
in this proposal, the dimensional variances and parking variances are supportable. However,
the appellant could have earned up to 12 additional dwelling units by applying for the
mixed income housing bonuses moderate income option this would have eliminated the variance
for dwelling unit count the city planning commission recommends that the board grant
their proposed use in dimensional variances but limit the unit count to no more than 82.
okay um mi 2023 005 966 6174 ridge number t dash a 100825 i vote yes with proviso use
registration require prior to occupancy of vacant commercial space on the ground floor
Yes, on the ground floor.
Yes, thank you.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes, with proviso.
James Snell, my vote is yes, with proviso.
Ishmael Shahid, my vote is yes, with proviso.
Thank you, counsel.
Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Board, and thank you to the neighbors.
Thank you.
We're going to move to number six, and we'll do six and seven together, right?
Okay, so number six is MI 2023-006-408-846 Union Street.
And number seven, MI 2023-007-203-844 Union Street.
Alan Nockmson is the attorney.
There's a recommendation of support from the Mantua Civic Association.
There's also a vote was 12 in support to non-opposition.
There's also a petition with nine neighbors who have signed it.
Alan Nockamson has been promoted.
Good afternoon, Mr. Nockamson. Could you please state your name and spell for this court stenographer?
Oh, yes, Alan Nockamson. A-L-A-N, last name Nockamson, N-O-C-H-U-M-S-O-N.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Could you identify your client in relationship to the two properties?
My client is Anuki Holdings, and in the virtual audience is its member, John Williams.
holdings and in the virtual audience is its member john williams right and our vice chair
Right.
has just a few questions for you sir good afternoon council do you agree to waive the
reading of the refusal or stipulate to its accuracy i do have you emailed in all the
required documents and exhibits that is needed to proceed with this case for both cases
um five days in advance of this hearing uh yes we have thank you now so please proceed and share
All right. So I'm actually doing both presentations together separately. You should have received separate package for each appeal, but because they're side by side and to accommodate the board in terms of its limited time, I wanted to do this as one presentation.