Richard Heath
The Bicon Headquarters on the Arborway
At a brief formal meeting of the Zoning Board of Appeals on Tuesday, Yale Terrace residents made a plea that Bicon Dental Implants document exactly what it does in its brick building at 501 Arborway. The property does not appear to have permits allowing the dental clinic or professional school activities it advertises as taking place there.
ZBA chair Christine Araujo referred the matter to the city law department.
Speaking to the JP News the next day, Yale Terrace resident and plaintiff's spokesperson Gerry O'Connor, who is also an attorney, said that the long effort to simply require Bicon to file an accurate occupancy permit is not over.
He said the hearing was brief; Vincent Morgan, DMD, president of Bicon [which has a staff of 15 dentists, technicians and hygienists] was there but didn't speak, and about 20 Yale Terrace residents attended.
O'Connor and Yale Terrace residents were appealing a Dec 3, 2015 decision by the Inspectional Services Department's attorney denying their request that Bicon apply for an occupancy permit.
Now it goes to the city's legal department.
O'Connor admitted that the response of the law deptartment will be "in a confidential memo. We won't know for reasons of attorney client privileges. We don't even know if we will be notified or if there will be another hearing."
Still, O'Connor is optimistic. He intends to file a Memo of Law to Adam Cedarbaum, the city assistant corporation counsel, in which the plaintiffs will argue that Bicon is operating without the required occupancy permit.
For a look at the activities being done at 501 Arborway, take a look at Bicon's website, which clearly advertises dental classes.
"I'm 100 percent sure of the outcome," said O'Connor said.
The Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council Zoning Committee will write a letter in support of the Yale Terrace plaintiffs.
On Thursday, City Councilor Matt O'Malley and State Rep. Liz Malia signed a joint letter to Arauyo supporting the plaintiffs; it was copied to ISD attorney Matthew Fitzgerald and Cederbaum
That letter read in part:
"Our aim in asking this appeal be sustained is simply to ensure that Bicon Dental Implants is as transparent and as thorough as possible in documenting its uses of [their] space on their permit. Sadly, their behavior thus far would seem to suggest otherwise."
On Wednesday, the JP News sat through a 90-minute discussion about a change in occupancy for a Centre Street gas station at the JP Neighborhood Council Zoning Committee; over a dozen neighbors made their cases pro and con to the business owner who is enlarging his convenience store space.
Bicon seems to be exempt from this process.
City Councillor Matt Malley
Joint letter in support of Yale Terrace plaintiffs from Councilor O'Malley and Rep Malia March 24
Previous coverage:
Yale Terrace Group Gains Support in Effort to Revoke Permit at Bicon Dental
Video: House at Center of Controversy Torn Down