The Zoning Committee of the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (JPNC) held a regular meeting last Wednesday evening, August 19, via Zoom. Chair David Baron, vice chair Purple Reign, JPNC chair Alcurtis Clark, and fellow committee members Kendra Halliwell, Andrea Howley, Jerry O'Connor, Willie Mitchell, Alessia Shelley, and David Seldin were in attendance.
Zavia Dickerson, the liaison to Jamaica Plain from the Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Services, and Michael Fishbein, a Senior Advisor to District 6 City Councillor Ben Weber, also were in attendance.
There were three matters on the agenda.
The first pertained to a request for a special permit for a new hair salon business in the currently-vacant ground-level retail space in the MetroMark apartment building at 3615-3621 Washington Street. Baron explained that the previous retail business had been granted a special permit for a conditional use, thereby requiring the new business to seek a new special permit.
Lawni Hamilton, who has been in the hair salon business for more than 30 years, serving a diverse clientele including celebrity clients, film productions, and weddings, explained to the board that he is seeking to open a four-seat salon, to be known as H By Lawni.
After a few questions and a brief discussion by the members and two residents of the building, the committee members unanimously approved the application.
The next matter pertained to the application of the 85-bed Armenian Nursing and Rehabilitation Center at 431 Pond Street (which has been there since 1915) for a variance to add an entry vestibule and private patio addition to the existing nursing home facility.
Architect Jim Thornhill from the firm of Applied Form + Space explained the project to the members and displayed a slide deck to illustrate the scope of the project, which will add about 470 sq. ft. to the existing building. The new entryway will provide greater accessibility and will feature improved safety features. There also will be eight new parking spaces, a garden of about 400 sq. ft. as part of the project, and a shaded pergola where residents will be able to sit.
There were no opponents and the members unanimously approved the application.
The matter that drew the most discussion was a proposal for the properties at 35-37 Walk Hill Street, 39-41 Walk Hill Street, and 43-45 Walk Hill Street in which the developers are seeking to construct a pair of single-family dwellings with attached two-car garages and two, two-family dwellings with two-car attached garages for a total of four buildings and six units altogether.
Gary Martell, one of the principals of the LLC that is the owner of the property, and who has developed similar projects in JP and nearby communities for decades, addressed the committee. He said that the property originally had been proposed (by another developer) for a three-story building consisting of between 28-38 units. However, Martell said abutters and the neighborhood objected to that plan, leading to his opportunity to purchase the property.
The property consists of 18,590 sq. ft. and is triangulated by Walk Hill, Wachusett, and Patten Sts. The existing building, which has been vacant for a while, had been used by a church as a school. Martell said the existing driveway will be utilized, thus requiring no additional curb cuts, and all of the utilities will be underground.
Martell said that he presented plans to the neighbors at a community meeting and adopted their suggestions for mansard-style and gable-style roofing to conform to the historic architecture of the triple-decker homes in the neighborhood. Martell also made the homes larger with three-BR units (per the neighbors' wishes) so as to encourage families to move in.
David Brody and Brian Frankel, who live two buildings away from the project, stated their opposition. "Four buildings on this lot are too much," said Brody, who noted that a school (the Boston Teachers Union School) is across the street. Brody added that he had not received notice of the previous neighborhood meetings.
However, David and Anita Bachrach, who are direct abutters, said they were in "complete support of this project," which they said was far better than the earlier proposal for a 28-unit building.
Anna Korden, another direct abutter who was born and raised in JP, said she had been a principal organizer of the opposition to the previous plan for the large building, but was in favor of the current proposal.
Korinn Koslofsky, whose children attend the nearby school, said she had "huge problems" with the previous proposal for a large building, but asked that Martell's group meet with officials from the school to discuss the construction schedule for his project.
Martell said that Ian McKinnon from Howard Stein Hudson, a construction and traffic consulting firm, will be in touch with the community to discuss the logistics of the project's construction.
Lisa Patrick, a direct abutter, said she is in "full support" of the proposal. "This proposal that Gary and his team have put forward is phenomenal," Patrick said. "He's going to keep the green space and the ledge that we see outside our windows. He listened to us and honored our wishes and suggestions. You couldn't ask for a better partner in somebody building a large project in a neighborhood."
Zoning Comm. members Halliwell, Mitchell, Purple Reign, and Clark spoke favorably about the project, approving of the design and noting that the previous proposal had been vociferously opposed by the community. The committee unanimously approved the project.
The Zoning Committee will present its recommendations to the full JPNC at its next meeting. All of the applicants still must go before the City of Boston Zoning Board of Appeals in order to obtain their special permits and variances.