West End/Beacon Hill infill and small developments

I have to say not bad for $30 million renovation. They maintained the original structure including the tower which is nice. I wish they added the funds to re-roof the structure at the back of the lot. The roof has been getting progressively worse.
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West End library could be replaced with affordable apartment building with two floors of library space​


By adamg on Wed, 12/13/2023 - 4:03pm
New West End library and apartments proposal


“Between Charles River Plaza and the Otis House: 12 stories including 2 stories of library space.
A non-profit housing group and its investment partner have won preliminary city approval to replace the current West End BPL branch at 151 Cambridge St. with 119 affordable apartments atop a new two-story library branch.
Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and Caste Capital submitted a proposal under Boston's Housing with Public Assets effort for a 12-story building:
The 119 units of affordable housing will include a mix of bedroom sizes, from studios to three-bedroom units. The high proportion of family-sized units in this proposal was a key factor in its selection and a key community objective for the development. Of the 119 residences, 40 apartments will be affordable to households earning up to 30 percent of Area Median Income (AMI), and 79 apartments will be designated for households earning up to 80 percent of AMI. ...
Twenty of the most deeply affordable apartments will be created using a dedicated subsidy, in partnership with the Boston Housing Authority, that allows new public housing to be built. The new development will also include a courtyard, multiple residential amenity spaces, and a shared plaza with the neighboring Otis House museum, library, and archives.
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To meet the city's energy goals, the building would have no natural-gas hookup - and the residential floors would all use "mass timber" rather than the steel and concrete that are more typical for building above six stories.
The new library would have about 70% more space than the current branch.”

The new BPL branch

https://www.universalhub.com/2023/west-end-library-be-replaced-affordable-apartment
 

POAH & Caste Capital File LOI for West End Library Redevelopment​

“After being selected as developers of the site in December 2023, POAH & Caste Capital have now filed a Letter of Intent for the redevelopment of the West End Library site along Cambridge Street. Plans call for a new mixed-use building to include a two-story library and 119 affordable rental units. The development would also include an outdoor plaza between the new library and the neighboring Otis House.”

poah


https://www.bldup.com/posts/poah-caste-capital-file-loi-for-west-end-library-redevelopment

https://bpda.app.box.com/s/8xg1uzgnd41p41f3nk1yehs0e3q784pe
 
stick n move said:

POAH & Caste Capital File LOI for West End Library Redevelopment​

“After being selected as developers of the site in December 2023, POAH & Caste Capital have now filed a Letter of Intent for the redevelopment of the West End Library site along Cambridge Street. Plans call for a new mixed-use building to include a two-story library and 119 affordable rental units. The development would also include an outdoor plaza between the new library and the neighboring Otis House.”

poah


https://www.bldup.com/posts/poah-caste-capital-file-loi-for-west-end-library-redevelopment

https://bpda.app.box.com/s/8xg1uzgnd41p41f3nk1yehs0e3q784pe
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Lovely! I wish the City would hurry up and make Cambridge St a people-centric place that is pleasant to spend time in, instead of a traffic sewer that is arguably the worst road in downtown Boston.
 
#bancars said:
Lovely! I wish the City would hurry up and make Cambridge St a people-centric place that is pleasant to spend time in, instead of a traffic sewer that is arguably the worst road in downtown Boston.
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And build the freaking Red-Blue connector, and MGH finish Phase 1 and 2 of its Cambridge Street-fronting overhaul, including the new Blue station entry.
 
#bancars said:
Lovely! I wish the City would hurry up and make Cambridge St a people-centric place that is pleasant to spend time in, instead of a traffic sewer that is arguably the worst road in downtown Boston.
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This might need its own thread now that it's in with the BPDA
 

Long a drug store, this key spot on Beacon Hill could soon be apartments​

POIL7VKO2FDRZCRA22LFMOUU5M.jpg

“Redevelopment plans are in the works for a prime corner lot leading to one of Boston’s most well-traversed retail corridors.

An arm of Egeria Group, a multinational real estate investment group with an office in Boston, intends to transform the 24-hour CVS Pharmacy at 155 Charles St. into a five-story apartment building with ground-floor retail. The 12-unit project would include two set aside at affordable rents.

“While Beacon Hill has a lot of beautiful aesthetics and history, this CVS building is not one of them,” said attorney Joseph P. Hanley of McDermott, Quilty, Miller, & Hanley at a meeting of the Beacon Hill Civic Association this week…….”

www.bostonglobe.com

Long a drug store, this key spot on Beacon Hill could soon be apartments - The Boston Globe

A developer is pitching a 12-unit apartment building with ground-floor retail where a 24-hour CVS now stands.
www.bostonglobe.com www.bostonglobe.com
 
Besides the normal nimbyism, the opposition to height and a sidewalk cantilever on what's a hot and unprotected sidewalk in a pretty derelicty square is obnoxious.
 
curcuas said:
Besides the normal nimbyism, the opposition to height and a sidewalk cantilever on what's a hot and unprotected sidewalk in a pretty derelicty square is obnoxious.
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I guess it's understandable if it's somebody with the windows highlighted below. Anybody else is overstepping their bounds. The CVS building doesn't need to be saved but this isn't a particularly inspiring replacement either.

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The funny part about that is *every single one of those windows* will be blocked even by a shorter building (5 vs 6 stories) AND the proposed cantilever would if anything move building mass away from the open interior space that affects all those windows...
 
Does anyone know why 155 charles doesnt show up on bostonplans? Every once in a while I notice this with certain projects and this looks like another one of them. It doesnt show up on bostonplans search or google.

The only documents I can find for the project are on the “beacon hill civic association” website. Are they allowed special privileges because its beacon hill?

Heres the site link
www.bhcivic.org

Beacon Hill Civic Association

Beacon Hill Civic Association Mission Statement The Beacon Hill Civic Association (BHCA) was established in 1922 by a small group of neighbors whose goal was to protect Beacon Hill's...
www.bhcivic.org

The mission statement:

Beacon Hill Civic Association Mission Statement
The Beacon Hill Civic Association (BHCA) was established in 1922 by a small group of neighbors whose goal was to protect Beacon Hill's historic residential character. Today, the BHCA continues as a volunteer organization that helps preserve and enhance the quality of life on Beacon Hill, a historic, urban, residential neighborhood in downtown Boston.


-The only presentations I can find on the project are from march 7th and march 10th 2025 from BHC, but not on the website I have to look through google.



-The only new info that comes out about the project is from 3rd parties who get granted access it seems, like local news organizations eg: the globe, universalhub etc. who report on what was approved or not at the meetings. Are they making it so projects that have to do with beacon hill are handled away from the public and only the rich and/or politically connected people who live/work on beacon hill have a say in what is approved or built there? Is that legal? It seems the only projects that have up to date information shown to the public are projects on the opposite side of cambridge street like the library expansion, or massive public works like the red blue connector. It seems like projects on the side of cambridge street that puts them in beacon hill jurisdiction are hidden from the public.
 
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Wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that it's within a landmark district? Just a hunch... I commented on the Beacon Hill landmark district in the other thread regarding the West End Library development
 
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