The group, Chinatown Progressive Association, objects to the zoning variance that the city granted the project for its height and density. The project is 28 stories or 290 feet in an area that is zoned for a maximum of 100 feet. The hotly debated project is the city's largest rental project in over three decades and will have 15% of its units affordable.
Lydia Lowe, director of the Association tells GlobeSt.com that her group opposes the project because it is "out of scale with the neighborhood." She notes that the project is not in line with the Chinatown Community Plan, whose principles were adopted into the city's zoning code, and the fears are that it will lead to the gentrification of the neighborhood.
Complicating matters is the fact the Chinatown Neighborhood Council, which the city recognizes as the official voice of the neighborhood, supports the project.
Repeated calls to the city's spokesperson and to Charles E. Smith were not returned by press time.
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