No late-night burgers in a tire shop at busy Grove Hall intersection, board rules

The Zoning Board of Appeal today rejected a proposal for a burger trailer inside a tire shop at 538 Blue Hill Ave. at Seaver Street over concerns from neighbors about late-night gatherings and crime and concerns from board members about security before its proposed 1 a.m. closing.

The board initially voted 5-2 to reject Ainee Pepen's La Real Hamburguesa proposal to sell burgers out of a custom-built trailer inside Tire Tech between 7 p.m. and 1 a.m. Wednesday through Thursday, but then voted 5-2 to reject the proposal without prejudice, which means Pepen can come back with a revised plan within a year.

Pepen, who lives nearby, said she chose the hours because it seems like the area needs the sort of food people would eat late at night, that she and her husband would do regular trash pickup and would have somebody around near closing to keep the place safe. There would be no tables and chairs. Tire Tech closes at 8 p.m., so there would be no conflict between burger buyers and tire consumers, she said.

Nearby residents and Project RIGHT, however, said the intersection is already violent and noisy enough late at night without the added enticement of burgers. Michael Kozu of Project RIGHT said there have been two murders within the past year - and a shooting around 12:30 a.m. just the other day. And, he added, there are regularly large numbers of loud, illegal street parties late at night.

A nearby resident, whose family has lived in their house since 1957, said she was concerned about the hordes of "dirt bike people" on weekend and the people who already get drinks at a nearby liquor store only further concentrating if they could get burgers late at night. She said there's a Burger King four blocks away and "it's always being robbed." Also, she recently saw a rat she estimated at 2 lbs.

"Right now, we've been through enough," she said.

Board members also expressed concern. Board member Hansy Better Barraza said that especially given the location, she really wanted to see a more detailed security plan. "It's a very busy area at night," board member Alan Langham said.

Board member Giovanny Valancia, however, voted in support, saying he didn't think there were really zoning issues involved in the conditional permit Pepen was seeking. He noted there was already another takeout place open until 1 a.m. just a block away.

Through an aide, City Councilor Brian Worrell (Dorchester) asked the board to defer a vote to let Pepen further discuss her proposal with residents.

The Boston Planning Department - formerly the BPDA - approved the idea of a food truck. Planner Jeff Hampton said that if the board were concerned about issues, it could make an earlier closing time part of its approval.