Board denies appeal and upholds Planning Department letter finding historic restaurant use at 524 Union St.

The Board of Appeals on a 4–0 vote denied an appeal of a Planning Department letter of determination that found the historic restaurant use at 524 Union Street had not been abandoned.

Property representative (caller identified as Smuka) described a complex history of prior approvals, temporary closures and a long vacancy, and asked the Board to revise or to strike immaterial or inaccurate narrative detail from the department’s five‑page determination. Planning Department Deputy Zoning Administrator Scott Sanchez described the timeline that led staff to reexamine the record and said new documentary material supplied by the owner supported a finding that the property’s restaurant use had not been abandoned.

Sanchez told the Board staff had asked the owner for additional evidence after an initial review; the owner later provided contemporaneous marketing and documentation that Planning staff found persuasive in the context of the property’s unusual record, including reference to a prior letter (the "Vasta Pasta" decision) that had applied a site‑specific fact pattern.

Commissioners noted the owner had an opportunity to file a brief in support of the appeal but had not done so in time; after commissioners discussed the record, Commissioner Rick Swigg moved to deny the appeal and uphold the Planning Department’s letter of determination. The motion carried and the Board denied the appeal, leaving the department’s determination intact and enabling the owner to proceed with leasing and permitting steps consistent with the LOD.

What happens next: The Planning Department letter remains effective and the owner may proceed with the department’s guidance on permitting and leasing of the landmarked restaurant space.