Thanks to architects Ed Forte, Michael Epp, and Gert Thorn for their ongoing diligence regarding Chase Bank’s design downgrade of 701 Centre St. without communication with the community, in spite of being located in the midst of a Neighborhood Design Overlay District.
This is not the first time community input has “slipped through the cracks” or been waived away for businesses and developers and will not be the last, without community vigilance. As abutters to both 701 Centre and the recently built, oversized condo building at 11 Burroughs St., we are disappointed that regulations pertaining to these projects were overlooked and abutters were not notified of these neighborhood changes.
When we made renovations to our house, we were obliged to delay construction for over two weeks until all 80 of our abutters had the opportunity to weigh in on the new design. Call us paranoid, but it sure seems that large businesses and developers have been able to skip over that process while individual homeowners, at least these two homeowners, had to adhere to these valuable regulations.
We are heartened to hear that conversations are occurring to ensure that going forward, Chase and other developers, large and small, will be held to the same expectations and regulations as residents.
Lee Ellenberg
Ken Mitchell
