Board approves Brighton building with 'generously sized' units over opposition of nearby condo developers who had previously gotten their own variances

The Zoning Board of Appeal today approved a six-story, 102-unit apartment building off Soldiers Field Road near Leo Birmingham Parkway that was designed like a "prow" to give most of the residents views of the nearby Charles River.

Some 17 of the units will be rented as affordable, up from the roughly 13 developer Steve Ballas of Chestnut Hill would have normally been required to set aside. People who rent these apartments can make no more than 50% to 90% of the Boston area median income.

Ballas's attorney, Joe Hanley, emphasized that this was not one of those "compact" proposals with tiny unit, but a building with "very vast" apartments, such as the roughly 55 one-bedroom units with an average size of 897 square feet.

The building will have room for a small cafe as well as 62 parking spaces and a Bluebikes station.

The only person to object to the proposal was an attorney for a neighboring apartment/condo project under development, in one of the many fast-growing sections of Brighton, who said there was no real hardship that required variances for the building's height and size, since Ballas's desire to maximize profits is not legally a hardship.

Board Chairwoman Christine Araujo, however, silenced him, saying that developers who themselves had earlier won variances from the board were in no position to complain about another developer getting a variance. She then called for a vote, and the board voted in favor unanimously.

44-46 Soldiers Field Pl. documents.