Dunkin' Donuts Developer Delays Meetings on Tremont St. Proposal

The Dunkin’ Donuts developer heading up a to install the chain restaurant in a Tremont Street storefront postponed an appearance at a neighborhood meeting with just one day’s notice, organizers said.

Clayton Turnbull, who wants to open his ninth coffee shop at the corner of West Brookline Street, sent a message to the Pilot Block Neighborhood Association on Tuesday informing them that his designers were not prepared for Wednesday’s meeting. Turnbull has also delayed his appearance before the Zoning Board of Appeals, where he will request a variance to allow a large take-out restaurant to be constructed in a space currently zoned for retail. That meeting is now scheduled for January 10.

“The good news is that he rescheduled,” PBNA Chairman David Mooney said to dozens of residents assembled at Wednesday’s meeting. “The bad news is that…we still don’t have a committed date. The PBNA…is in a little bit of a quiet period.”

The association has set December 15 as a deadline for the next meeting to take place. Members will hear from Turnbull, if he chooses to attend, and take a vote on whether to support the proposal.

Meanwhile, neighbors have , launching a website with an online petition and reaching out to elected officials to try and gain political backing. Resident Anita Polli described the uphill battle created by Turnbull’s local connections.

“Clayton Turnbull has close personal and professional ties to the mayor,” she said carefully. “The mayor has basically said behind the scenes that he feels this use should be approved.”

"There’s nothing untoward about it. It’s just how politics are," she added.

Political involvement

Turnbull was named in a 2009 Boston Globe report as someone who donated money to former state Senator Dianne Wilkerson. In the article, Turnbull admitted to writing Wilkerson a check for $3,000 but said it was a personal loan, not a donation.

Wilkerson testified in favor of Turnbull’s controversial bid to construct a Dunkin’ Donuts on Mass Ave. in the late 1990s, the article reported. Turnbull denied any connection.

According to the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, Turnbull donated $500 to the Menino campaign in 2009.

Current proposal

Turnbull wants to turn the entire corner space at 655 Tremont Street into a coffee shop with free wi-fi, comfortable seating and the usual coffee and donut offerings. A muted Dunkin’ Donuts sign would be displayed on the Tremont Street side of the building, and trash cans for customers would be placed out front and emptied by employees. 

On his appeal application Turnbull also requested permission for “outside walk seating” at the restaurant. 

Residents say size is the issue

Online and in flyers distributed around the neighborhood, opponents of the project have cited the size of the space as their key issue with Turnbull's proposal. A flyer distributed in the neighborhood refers to the project as a "mega" restaurant occupying a 3,000-square-foot space.

Take-out restaurants over 2,500 square feet are currently forbidden under Article 64 of the city’s zoning code, while smaller eateries are a conditional use.

"We don’t have a knee jerk reaction to Dunkin’ Donuts," Polli said Wednesday. "This is about putting a large take out restaurant in an area where it’s forbidden."

Conflicting numbers have been povided with respect to the exact square footage of the corner storefront, and the Inspectional Services Deparment has reportedly promised to re-measure the space in advance of the ZBA hearing.

Polli and South End resident Nancy Downer asked audience members on Wednesday to get involved by sending letters and making calls to local politicians. The neighborbood association also solicited volunteers for a new Development Review Committee that would oversee the association's position on the project.

“This is an ongoing issue and it’s something the neighbors need to be involved with," Downer said.