The city’s Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA) on Tuesday voted unanimously to approve a 42-unit extended stay hotel proposed for the former Little House property at 275 E. Cottage St. The vote came only hours after the general membership of the Columbia Savin Hill (CSH) Civic Association voted 18-4 to oppose the matter at its Monday night meeting.
As proposed, The Inn at the Little House, by Adam Sarbaugh and Jennifer Sandlin’s Cornerstone Real Estate, would be connected to their existing residential building on Dorchester Avenue and would include ground-floor space meant to expand the restaurant space in the Dot. Ave. building that local restaurant operators have told them is too small by itself to support a new restaurant.
The new building would also include a rooftop cafe and deck connected to the restaurant space.
The controversial proposal was reviewed by the civic group’s planning committee last month, which recommended that the civic group oppose the project, mainly due to objections about the site’s density on a one-way street and the lack of parking or drop-off areas.
At Monday’s civic meeting, Sarbaugh said the idea was to provide something that doesn’t yet exist in the neighborhood. But he encountered faced stiff opposition from neighbors who once championed his approach for re-developing the Dorchester Market building at 951 Dorchester Ave.
“Your development has no consideration for the community and neighborhood and people that live here,” said Donna McColgan, a vocal opponent whose husband, John, wrote a letter to The Reporter voicing opposition recently.
“You are going to kill, as in dead, the neighborhood over there,” she said, “and you said years ago you wouldn’t do that. There is no one who would want to live across from that.”
Interjected Sarbaugh, “I actually have support from families across the street for this.”
Among others supporting the project: Former City Councillor Frank Baker, who appeared before the ZBA and recalled spending a lot of time in his teens at the Little House. Sarbaugh, he said, “has been a good neighbor and he’s a great businessman.”
“So this is a way to get people into our community of Dorchester, which we’re very proud of, to potentially spend some money here and see what Dorchester has to offer,” he said.
Nearby resident Eva Tse Fowler also supported the proposal to replace what she called the current eyesore on East Cottage: “I think that’s a very nice addition, and I really look forward to what else this new space will bring to the neighborhood with the restaurant, a place to hang out, a place to, you know, grab coffee, a place to kind of bring our friends or invite a friend, they can stay instead of … going to, like, Southie [or other more distant areas].”
But Kristine Hoag, chair of the CSH civic association’s planning committee, said the group feels the number of units is just too large, especially on the narrow East Cottage Street, which could face problems with all the new drop offs and pick ups. And the group is concerned about potential shadows on some neighboring houses.
The project, approved by the Boston Planning Department board in July, needed variances for several reasons, including the fact the lot’s zoning prohibits hotel and restaurant use, didn’t have parking and had too many floors.
