Chestnut Hill Commercial Area
Frequently Asked Questions

Maintaining the same property value – and the corresponding tax revenue – when lowering the height of Building A from 14 stories to 12 stories requires expanding the floor area of each remaining story.  Since the value of condo space on the highest floors averages about 16.8% higher than on lower floors, the additional area would need to be greater than the area lost.

The additional space would encroach on the 100’ wide public plaza (referred to in the zoning as “Large Site Open Space”) between buildings A and B, leaving about 55’ of width.  Retail on either side of this narrower space would be less viable, and the space would be less useful and less appealing.

• It would reduce the Large Site Open Space from 8.08% of the lot to 4.43% of the lot size. The zoning requires that the Large Site Open Space must be at least 5% of the total lot size, so this discrepancy would have to be resolved.
• Replacing the condo space with space with a lower value per square foot uses (retail, parking and hotel) means that even more space would need to be added to Building A to make up the lost value in use, further encroaching on the public plaza.
• Adding 45’ to one wing of the building would make that wing about 130’ wide, which is impractical for double-sided corridor condos (85’ is close to the practical maximum).
• Ultimately, the buildings would have to be redesigned in ways that would further impinge on the public plaza as well as many other neighborhood benefits already established, such as the interior roadways that keep traffic off Heath Street and the wide vegetation buffer along the west side and southwest corner of the lot.

According to experts in both architecture and urban planning and design, the experience of people using the space is much more affected by the space and amenities at the ground level than the difference between a 12-story and a 14-story building.  Thus, the public value of the maintaining the plaza’s dimensions substantially outweighs the cost and the visual effects of the 13th and 14th stories.