Several Alleghany Street residents are raising concerns over a plan by Home for Little Wanderers to subdivide a parcel of land on Alleghany Street and build a new two-and-a-half story building.
The Home for Little Wanderers is a nonprofit child and family service agency that has its headquarters in Walpole. The nonprofit currently owns a large parcel of land at 69-71 Alleghany St. where it operates the Harrington House, which has a co-ed program serving youths between the ages of 8 and 15.
The nonprofit wants to subdivide that property and build what it describes as a “as-of-right” project that includes a two-and-a-half story, two-family building with 20 parking spots. An “as-of-right” project means that the project does not require any variances to be approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals to be built.
The building would house the nonprofit’s Community Collaborative, a program that serves youths with emotional and mental health issues. The program currently operates in Brighton, but the lease at a facility in that neighborhood is expiring. Construction is expected to begin on the Alleghany Street project this month.
But Jeannine Barry and several other residents of Alleghany Street have singed a letter that was sent to Mayor Martin Walsh, Mission Hill City Councilor Josh Zakim, and several other elected officials saying that they oppose the project and want to see a “stop work order” imposed. They cite several reasons for their opposition, including contradictory information from the nonprofit about the exact use of the proposed building, a lack of notification to two abutters of the project, and traffic on Alleghany Street, which is a dead-end street with the Fenway High School on it.
The Home for Little Wanderers and the Mayor’s Office did not respond to requests for comments.
Kyndal Feinman, a spokesperson for Zakim, said in a statement, “We have been in touch with several of the neighbors and have been coordinating with the Mayor’s Office and [Inspectional Services Department] to ensure that this project does not violate the zoning or building codes, or any other applicable City regulations.”