Charter Realty was at the Nazzaro Center to inform residents about the proposed demolition to take place at 198 Hanover Street, 60 Cross Street, and 53 Salem Street in Boston’s North End. These three buildings, owned by Charter Realty, will be demolished for a 5,500 square feet development that would span from Hanover Street to Salem Street.
The demolition has not yet commenced due to an Article 85 Demolition Delay. Two of the buildings, 198 Hanover Street and 53 Salem Street, will undergo review by the Boston Landmarks Commission (BLC), that requires an automatic application for buildings at least fifty years of age.
The BLC hearing will take place on Tuesday, February 14, 2017, where a determination will be made to authorize the demolition or delay it 90 days. Charter will not be pulling building permits until the BLC application process is complete. If approved, the building permits are planning to be submitted in March.
The buildings are currently made up of commercial spaces and three residential units that are above the commercial space on 53 Salem Street. The new proposal will be comprised of all commercial space, and the removal of the current billboard that sits over the old location of Bread + Butter on Cross Street.
Company representatives said demolition could start in the Fall of 2017. After demolition, a slab foundation will cover the entire surface of the former three buildings, but will not protrude onto the brick plaza on Cross Street, which is owned by MassDOT.
Tuesday, February 14, 2017: Boston Landmarks Commission Public Hearing will be at City Hall, Room 900, from 6:00pm – 7:30pm. Written comments are welcome to BLC by the date of the hearing.
I was born at 53 Salem Street and lived there until I was about nine years old.
I actually like the design of the development Charter Reality has planned but we should be aware that this is a harbinger of what’s to come.
Real estate in the North End is as hot as it’s ever been and there is going to be a lot of pressure to tear down our historic old tenement buildings to build expensive new developments. This is already happening in New York on the Lower East Side.
There are lots of ways to destroy a neighborhood. You can demolish it all at once like the BRA did to the West End or you can chip away at the edges like we see happening in the North End. The result is the same but the pain is spread out over many years.
Nick, you are right. But one of the buildings on cooper street was just torn down but replaced with a similar tenement look of surrounding buildings which still keeps the look and feel of the original neighborhood. I believe that this could become the more popular trend. It went from a 4 story to a 6 story building. Thoughts?
Tom, the West End was demolished because the land was more valuable than the people. The buildings were old and the tax base was correspondingly low. The city wanted revitalization and more taxes. The problem was, the people who lived there liked it just as it was. Tough luck for them.
The North End has always been in flux, people came, stayed for a few years and left. Change is inevitable and healthy. I agree with you that some of the renovations have been done well. I object to the wall of skyscrapers being built around the North End. They’re strangling our neighborhood and separating us from the rest of the city.
Illustrating the wonderful interest in the welfare of the North End and its residents by outside developers, is the snow and ice covering the sidewalk outside the Cross St. building that Charter Realty wants to replace. Evidently, Charter Realty doesn’t give two hoots about the clear sidewalk ordinance. Great neighbors.
I agree Nick. Our entire city is being strangled by skyscrappers. The look of Boston is being totally changed from a European style city with grand character of an earlier age to the look of Chicago and New York over sized buildings. It is also attracting a generation of new urbanites who love the character of the North End, but, have no sense of what the old neighborhoods were like. They are attracted to the upper crust feel of Boston. The old neighborhoods are being wiped out as Businesses return their headquarters to Boston and hire these younger educated non Bostonians who love living in an exciting urban setting. It’s the Millennial generation that is now dictating what Boston will become. I will miss what we had.
Well Nick you are right as the other comments. I remember walking through the West End as a teen with my boyfriend and now husband and seeing the devastation of houses where his family owned 2 buildings all Family,bathtubs,wires-hanging,bulldozers nocking down their homes, it was very sad. (Eminent Domain) and yes our neighborhood has changed but no one can take away our memories of growing up here in the North End for sure