I’m going through zoning cases at the place they pay me and I noticed something funny. Well I notice a lot of odd, “huh?” stuff. For example, I’m trying to figure out what happened to the Salvation Army Headquarters that was supposed to be at the spot where 555 Massachusetts sits now. Around 1990 there was supposed to be a non-profit with shelter (Zoning Commission 90-8M/88-23C). But instead there is something else. Maybe not enough lawyers and money.
Another project was the 7th Street Penn Quarter area with the older facades and the modern high rise behind it. I have read/heard complaints about how the whole facade thing is bad and it’s bad for historic preservation. Well looking at the papers, the Historic Preservation people signed off on the project. Yes, there is a signature and everything. Were they browbeaten by the developer’s lawyers?
And there are other projects, other PUDs, where I’ll admit, I don’t have all the information. But I look at what the paperwork says, remember what the location looks like now and sometimes things don’t match up.