Boston ZBA Approves South Boston Brewery Complex, Defers Controversial Fenway Takeout Case

BOSTON — August 12, 2025 — Boston's Zoning Board of Appeal deadlocked 3-3 — twice — on a Fenway takeout restaurant before deferring the case to October 7. The board could neither approve nor deny WONDER's conditional use permit application for a roughly 3,000-square-foot, mostly-delivery-focused restaurant at 1260 Boylston Street, with Jeff Hampton of the City of Boston Planning Department recommending denial without prejudice due to traffic-congestion concerns near Fenway Park and the Fenway Civic Association calling the concept a "ghost kitchen-like operation." Member Roberto Valencia argued in support, saying "any business that uses that space is going to create a traffic impact — that's for the city to solve, not one business." The board unanimously approved an adaptive-reuse brewery-distillery-restaurant complex at 202 West 1st Street in South Boston for Wildlife Hospitality, the team behind Beehive Restaurant, and also voted to reconsider a previously denied lodging-house expansion at 507 Massachusetts Avenue after the applicant submitted a revised plan and updated Boston Planning Department support letter.