The InterContinental Boston Hotel installed an outdoor bar and private seating bordering the Boston Harborwalk “in the spirit of activating the waterfront,” according to its attorney, but has redesigned its patio and removed signs discouraging the public from using the area.
The state Department of Environmental Protection issued a notice of noncompliance against the luxury hotel and condominiums in July after the Conservation Law Foundation filed a complaint alleging violations of the property’s waterways license.
“We hope this is the last lesson that the InterContinental needs to receive from the state in order to understand its obligations and fulfill them,” said Peter Shelley, senior counsel at CLF.
The license, issued when the high-end hotel was built in 2005, requires the InterContinental to allow 24-hour public access to a 60-foot-wide strip of sidewalk, patio and lawn bordering Fort Point Channel.
The DEP in July ordered the hotel to remove the new Five-10 Waterfront outdoor bar and signs indicating that nearby seating was restricted to its condo owners. The hotel has hosted a series of private parties on the patio this summer, charging up to $2,000 per four-hour period, according to CLF staff who inquired about rates.
In a response sent to DEP on Monday, attorney Diane Rubin of Prince Lobel said the hotel would remove the restrictive signs, remove planters separating the bar from the Harborwalk, relocate furniture “to ensure an open and welcoming environment for the public,” and relocate the bar next to the hotel building. It has retained some seating in the 60-foot zone available for the public.
“Patio seating need not impede pedestrian access, but rather encourages use of the public open space and activates the waterfront,” Rubin wrote, on behalf of condo associations representing the hotel, parking garage and residences. “We believe the patio area welcomes and draws people to what might otherwise be a somewhat isolated part of the Harborwalk.”
CLF has been vocal about waterfront property owners restricting public access in apparent violation of state Chapter 91 regulations, which enforce the public trust doctrine that defines the ocean as a public resource.
CLF staff and supporters attempted to gain entry to a section of the Harborwalk blocked off by the Institute of Contemporary Art for a cocktail party on Aug. 4, WGBH reported.
