The Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA) on Tuesday approved a new sushi restaurant at 605 Tremont St., as well as renewed the zoning relief for two electronic signs in the Fenway.
605 Tremont St.
At 6-5 Tremont St., Nancy Lo, one of the building’s owners, proposed a “small sushi restaurant on the ground level of this building.” The restaurant will feature 12 seats and will require “minimal construction.” Right now, the space is vacant.
The restaurant will be called 311, and Lo said that the restaurant operators have also had other restaurants in Chinatown, and have served takeout before.
In response to concerns about cooking, Lo said that “sushi is very minimal cooking,” and the only cooking will involve rice and soup. The “fish will be raw,” she said.
Conor Newman of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services said that an abutters meeting was held in June, and the office is “unaware of any concerns from the community.”
The ZBA reported that they received some letters of support, and one letter of opposition. City Council President Ed Flynn was in support.
The ZBA voted to approve this proposal “with the usual takeout provisos,” and that the approval is for this applicant only.
49-65 Lansdowne St. and 154–156 Ipswich St.
Attorney Connor O’Dwyer presented the proposals for zoning relief for two electronic signs near Fenway Park, one at 49-65 Lansdowne St. and one at 154-156 Ipswich St.
Both signs had been granted conditional use permits eight years ago, which are set to expire soon. There are “no changes or alterations to the sign” proposed, and O’Dwyer asked for “renewal of the zoning relief for another eight-year term.”
Both signs also have agreements with the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) regarding their operations and brightness levels.
Conor Newman of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services said that in both cases, the “applicant reached out to a number of local civic associations,” as well as distributed flyers to residents. He said that the mayor’s office “is unaware of any concerns at this time.:
Iris Tan of the Fenway Community Development Corporation (CDC) said that the organization is in support, and Jeff Hampton of the BPDA said that it “recommends approval” with the proviso that the signs continue to comply with existing regulations as well as “all previous conditions of their approval.”
The ZBA approved both signs with the provisos that they “comply with the previous set of conditions that govern the use of the board and for an eight year term,” along with the BPDA’s provisos.