In her decision, the state's secretary of environmental affairs, Ellen Roy Herzfelder, writes that the project "will help to knit together several existing neighborhoods in the City of Boston." She adds that it also has the potential to "advance the policy goals of smart growth by encouraging development to occur near existing infrastructure and the state's mass transit network."

The project, being developed by Roger Cassin and Arthur Winn, underwent more than two years of public meetings and numerous revisions to satisfy environmental activists and local residents who worried that that the height and density of the project would create wind tunnels, traffic jams and shadows, among other issues.

Initially, the project involved three parcels of land and was going to consist of two towers that would be 33 and 38 stories high. Opposition to the heights of the towers pushed a redesign that had a 29-story tower, a 14-story tower and a seven-story tower. Then the Citizen's Advisory Council asked the developers to push the one of the buildings back up to 35 stories, so the building could be taller and leaner.

In its final configuration, the project will consist of a 35-story tower at 101 Clarendon St. that will involve 510,000-sf of space, including 160 condominium units, a 200-room hotel, a 30,000-sf health club, 186 parking spaces and ground-level retail space. The next parcel, 100 Berkeley St., will consist of a 14-story building that will have 275,000-sf of space including 216 condominium units, 12,000-sf of ground level retail space and 100 parking spaces. The final developed parcel, 171 Arlington St., will have a five-story building that will step up to seven stories and will consist of 194,000-sf of space, including 141 residential units, an 8,800-sf day care center and a 10,800-sf grocery store. These buildings will surround a four-story, 633-car parking garage. At the last minute, the developers agreed, at the request of the Turnpike Authority, to create a small park of 11,350 sf of landscaped open space in the adjoining parcel, across Arlington Street.