Boston ZBA deadlocks on South Boston brownstone addition, effectively denying project

BOSTON -- July 30, 2024, Boston's Zoning Board of Appeal deferred a contested boutique wine-and-spirits application near Boston College and deadlocked on a South Boston brownstone addition at its July 30 virtual hearing. The board voted 5-1 to continue the Chins and Spirits application at 2193-2201 Commonwealth Avenue in Brighton to September 24, after Boston College Vice President Tom Keady testified in strong opposition, citing approximately 4,500 undergraduates under the age of 21, while longtime Brighton resident and former Secretary of State William F. Galvin called the proposal "nothing less than an effort to exploit its location close to Boston College." The Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Services also requested deferral, citing a misread date on the city's online case tracker. At 813 East Broadway, a motion to deny without prejudice, a motion to approve with design review, and a motion to defer each failed on a 3-3 or 4-3 split, leaving the project effectively denied without the ability to reapply with the same design. The board unanimously approved a 26-unit home ownership building at 26 Notre Dame Street in Roxbury and three fully affordable Welcome Home Boston home ownership units in Mattapan sponsored by the nonprofit ACEDONE, and it approved the G-Code coding education center and co-living space at 43 Hutchings Street in Roxbury over a 67-signature neighborhood petition in opposition.