State Secretary of Environmental Affairs Seeking Fan Pier Project Revisions

BOSTON-State Secretary of environmental affairs Robert Durand is seeking changes in the city’s Municipal Harbor Project, specifically in the 14-acre Fan Pier Project that was proposed by Chicago-based developer Nicholas Pritzker. In a letter to the Boston Redevelopment Authority, Durand wrote, “I have required that open spaces be expanded to enhance public connectivity to the waterfront–physically, visually and psychologically.”

In a draft of his pending decision, Durand proposes eliminating one office tower and cutting building heights near the water, as well as increasing distance between the buildings and the water. “The secretary wants more open space and access to water,” says Doug Pizzi, press secretary at the executive office of environmental affairs. “It was left that the easiest way to do this was to get rid of Building H. The door is open for Pritzker to come up with an alternate plan.” In the proposed plan Building H occupies 500,000 sf and a half acre footprint.

Pritzker’s local spokesperson, Pam McDermott, could not be reached for comment by press time. She says in a written statement, “We really just need to go over this and study the implications of it. We need time to absorb it.”