Developer proposes Charlestown residential tower taller than the Bunker Hill Monument

A developer has proposed replacing a pair of ramshackle houses on Mystic Avenue at the Somerville line with a 29-story, 695-unit residential building with a European-style "paseo" market and restaurant hall.

The building, at Mystic Avenue and Dorrance Street, would be 334 feet tall, compared to the 283-foot height of the Bunker Hill Monument and the hill it sits on.

However, through his attorney, developer Scott D. Brown told the BPDA today that the two Mystic Avenue parcels he hopes to use are the best possible place to put up a tower in the Town: As far away from the Bunker Hill Monument as you can get, why, the building would be right on the Somerville line. Also, it's surrounded by "massive infrastructure 'moats' " in the form of the I-93 deck and the Orange Line/commuter rail tracks that will minimize the building's impact on nearby residential areas.

And yet, the new tower will bring numerous improvements to the area just by existing, the "letter of intent" continues: As the tallest structure around, the tower will create a new "striking, elegant" landmark announcing to people coming from the north that they have made it to Boston. Also, the building's brightly lit lobby will face the Sullivan Square T station and "cast light into the nighttime gloom to enhance a sense of passenger safety at this presently isolated multi-modal transit station."

In addition to the Euro-hall, Brown is also proposing dedicated work-from-home suites, a fitness center with "both indoor and outdoor exercise experiences" and "world-class" resident lounges that will feature both panoramic views of the surrounding cityscape and smokestacks as well as "direct access to outdoor recreation and a pool deck."

The building would have 240 parking spaces in total for residents and employees and customers of the restaurants and other businesses in the Euro-hall.

The letter, on behalf of Brown's Fulcrum Global Investors, signals he will shortly file detailed plans for the proposed building, which will start a period of review and public meetings and hearings by the BPDA.

Such plans for such a large project typically include a detailed traffic analysis - potentially critical for the current overloaded traffic vortex that is Sullivan Square, although the letter suggests many residents will take advantage of the possibly less gloomy Sullivan Square station, with its subway platforms and numerous bus lines to destinations that include the Longwood Medical Area and Nubian Square.

One Mystic filings and calendar.