City Blocks Work On Condo Project

Harvard's plans for a massive office and condominium complex off Mt. Auburn St. hit an unexpected snag late last week when the city's Historical Commission voted to prevent for at least six months the demolition of two buildings on the site of the proposed development.

The commission designated the two buildings--134 Mt. Auburn St. and 3 Mt. Auburn Place--as "historically significant" and also took under consideration a petition from neighbors that it declare the neighborhood a "neighborhood conservation district." If the city council voted for the conservation district designation, community residents might be able to prevent demolition indefinitely.

Officials of Harvard and Gerald Hines Interests--the company chosen by the University to develop the "University Place" parcel--said yesterday they were surprised by the opposition and unsure of how it would affect construction plans.

"We were quite surprised that the fact that the plans called for those buildings to come down had not registered," John Griffin, an attorney for Hines, said yesterday, adding, "We've made no decision about what to do; no alternatives have been decided on yet."

Design changes would be expensive, Griffin said, though he added "I suppose anything is possible."

Community residents have played a major role in the planning for the $25 million project, and neighborhood opposition had been muted and insignificant until Thursday's Historical Commission hearing, which drew dozens of locals and a petition that included the signatures of several Harvard professors.

"Everyone was pretty well aware or should have been that under the plans those two buildings were to be eliminated," Louis Armistead, assistant to the vice-president for government and community affairs, said yesterday.

Armistead said Harvard would try to work out some settlement with community residents; several preservation groups were offered the two buildings--one an example of Greek revival architecture and the other of inexpensive early 19th century housing--on the condition that they move them from the site, he added.

No Money

"There was some interest, but no one could get up the money to move them," Armistead said, adding that transportation costs for the buildings might total $20,000 apiece.

One of the two buildings rests on what is slated to be a small park in the new development; the other is above a proposed underground parking garage, and construction would likely be impossible with it in place, Harvard officials said.

Richard Reynolds, the local representative from the Hines Co., could not be reached for comment. Eileen Lang, proprietor of The Big Picture, a store in the Mt. Auburn St. building, refused to comment yesterday.

Charles Sullivan, executive director of the Historical Commission, said yesterday the University had only recently applied for demolition permits for the two buildings, apparently because it was unaware of their historical significance. If they had wished to proceed with early spring construction, they could have asked for the demolition permits any time during the last year and then waited out the six month period.

The committee voted unanimously to declare the two buildings historically significant. Built in 1841, the building at 134 Mt. Auburn St. is an "important example" of Greek revival architecture, Sullivan said; the house at 3 Mt. Auburn St. was moved there in 1856 though it was built close to the turn of the century, and is among the last remaining examples of "the inexpensive type of housing once common in Harvard Square," Sullivan said.

Sullivan said the opposition wasn't a "big attack on University Place" but rather an attempt to save the two buildings." Laurence W. Wylie, Dillon Professor of the Civilization of France, and George C. Homans '32, professor of Sociology, were among those who signed a petition favoring the creation of a neighborhood conservation district in the area, Sullivan said.

Wylie's son Jay said yesterday "in general people fear encroachment of commercial buildings," adding the neighborhood was made up of "quite a few modest but old buildings, of which these two are examples." Others speculated yesterday that neighbors feared future development of several parcels owned by Louis DiGiovanni.

The neighborhood "feels they're being nibbled to death," Sullivan said, adding however that Hines Co. and Harvard had "already modified their plan significantly" to meet neighborhood concerns about over-development and to provide a "buffer" between the project and the adjacent neighborhood.

The city council would have to approve the creation of a neighborhood conservation district which would give community residents the power to block demolitions. Before the council vote, a study commission of historical committee members and neighborhood residents would have to produce a report on the issue.

The city council also voted last night to investigate potential parking problems caused by construction Parcel 1B next to the Kennedy School and on University Place. The two developments will usurp much of the available parking in Harvard Square, which has caused complaints from many local merchants.

Before ground can be broken for the University Place development, the council will also have to approve a series of road alterations