A Massachusetts Appeals Court ruling yesterday paved the way for the $300 million redevelopment of the former Middlesex County courthouse in East Cambridge.
The Appeals Court upheld a 2015 Land Court decision that determined the former Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse, when transferred from state ownership to private ownership under Boston developer Leggat McCall Properties, would still be considered a legal, preexisting nonconforming structure despite losing its government immunity from zoning rules.
The courthouse’s size exceeded zoning regulations regarding floor-to-area ratios when built between 1968 and 1974, and it now exceeds the current regulations by a greater amount in addition to exceeding by 200 feet the 80-foot building height limit adopted after it was constructed.
Leggat plans to redevelop the 22-story building to include 20 stories with 476,303 square feet of office, retail and residential uses. Four neighboring property owners, including noted architect Graham Gund, sued the Cambridge Planning Board, the state and Leggat McCall in 2014, after the board issued special permits for the project. The residents favor demolishing the building or substantially reducing its size.
But in its ruling, the Appeals Court stated, “When the courthouse loses its governmental immunity, nothing in the zoning ordinance or the statutory scheme suggests that the Planning Board should look back to when the structure was constructed to determine whether it complied with the then-existing zoning ordinance from which it was immune at the time,” adding, “Nothing in the statutory scheme suggests that we should treat the courthouse as if its governmental immunity never had existed.”
Leggat executive vice president Robert Dickey said the company was pleased with the ruling.
“We now look forward to working with the city and the East Cambridge neighborhood to transform the derelict former courthouse facility into a modern mixed-use project, contributing many benefits to those living around the building and in the broader community,” he said.
Mark Bobrowski, attorney for the neighboring property owners, said they are considering their appellate options.
Jeff Roberts, Cambridge’s land use and zoning project planner, said, “If this is the end of the litigation, the developer can proceed to do design development and construction design for the project, and would seek a building permit.”
