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Holyoke disability commission approves mailbox variance for Brights (Wright's) Block renovation
Summary
The Holyoke Commission on Disability voted to accept a variance request allowing resident mailboxes to remain in their historic storefront locations on High Street despite not meeting current clearance requirements; developers said facade protections and historic tax credits limit structural changes and proposed alternative accessible mailbox options.
The Holyoke Commission on Disability on Feb. 26 voted to accept a variance that allows resident mailboxes at the Brights (Wright's) Block redevelopment on High Street to remain in their current locations even though the surrounding clearance does not meet current code turning-radius requirements.
Developer Vadim Tolshinsky, who presented the project with partner Bill Wamldorf, said the four-buildings-on-one-block rehabilitation—marketed as Brights Block—uses historic tax credits and other subsidies that restrict altering facades and moving load-bearing walls. "So we are here for our project, lovingly called Brights Block," Tolshinsky said, noting three of four storefronts already have accessible entries and the fourth will be modified with a…
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