Cleveland Circle Development Plans Filed, Neighbors Have Concerns

Cleveland Circle-area residents could be getting 82 new neighbors, based on new plans for the long-gone Circle Cinema site.

The Globe reports that Boston Development Group, who are developing the site, have filed new plans which include a 181-room hotel, 82 luxury apartments, as well as medical office, retail and restaurant space. They also plan to build a 141-space parking lot beneath the structure. If they get approval from both the Town and City of Boston, they aim to begin construction in the spring, and open about 18 months afterward.  

Project Manager John Muenier told the Globe that they are "excited and looking forward to the public process."

Not all of the residents are on board with these plans, the Boston Herald reports: While the developer hopes to build the apartments facing the Circle--and the nearby Cassidy Playground, residents would prefer the hotel be there as a focal point for the neighborhood. 

“If they build it the way they intend, we’re going to get more of the same. It’s not going to attract the type of tenants this area needs,” a concerned Brighton resident Eva Webster told the Globe.

In April,. At around the same time, the group switched to a one-phase development (previously two) to raze and rebuild the site in a single 16-month period. 

Part of the Cleveland Circle Development is across Brookline's border, although the bulk is in Boston--so Boston could take. The developers signed , which included stipulations guaranteeing the developers will not "build around Brookline."