A homeowner on Park Street and his development team came back to the Fields Corner Civic Association (FCCA) last Tuesday (Feb. 7) with a revamped project on Park Street that is larger and has more units. Bucking the usual trend of neighbors nixing revisions asking for something larger, this request came from the neighborhood.

Representing the two-family property’s owner, Vu Huynh, of 82-84 Park St., James Christopher of Dorchester’s 686 Architects and attorney JD Barry presented the new plan, which now comes in at 15 units in a 5-story building with 6 ground-level parking spaces.

“At the January meeting there was discussion and community feedback that they would prefer more smaller units with less bedrooms,” said Barry. He and Christopher said neighbors felt larger units would bring more cars to the area, and they also preferred to eliminate a ground-floor retail space. That retail space is now a small ground-floor studio unit. The remainder of the units are one-bedroom and two-bedroom units between 504 and 992 square feet There is a fifth-floor penthouse that is currently being contemplated as the new residence for Huynh. And the property now also has a small amount of green space buffering on its perimeter.

Previously, Christopher said, the plan was to demolish the existing home and build a four-story, mixed-use building with nine units and two parking spaces. They aim to make some minor changes to the new plan and re-file it with the city this week. They will also reappear at the FCCA’s March meeting for a final time.

The property does require zoning relief, particularly because even though it’s a residential use zone now, it carries a zoning of “light industrial.” Barry said he hoped they could get a Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA) hearing date in April.

Both Christopher and Barry said working with the city and the community had been an excellent experience and had made their client’s project better.

Thai Oishi awaits word on beer/wine license
The owners of the new Thai Oishi Thai and Sushi restaurant on Adams Street in Fields Corner appeared at the February meeting to seek support for a beer and wine liquor license for their five-month-old business. They said that since they opened in September, they have routinely had requests for beer and wine and sake to complement the sushi and Thai dishes.

“When they find out we don’t serve that because we don’t have a license, they will change to take-out orders, or they will change restaurants, or they will come into the dining room and are disappointed when they find out we don’t have the license,” said Purichaya Tawinno.

“We don’t want to disappoint our customers and having this license will really help our business to grow.”

Most neighbors at the meeting were in support. The restaurant hasn’t had any issues and seems to be enjoying initial success in what has historically been a high-turnover location. Thai Oishi has already gone through a License Board hearing and is awaiting a community support letter. If approved by the community and the License Board, they will go on a waiting list until a license becomes available

Putting crime elements in focus
The February meeting highlighted several high-profile crime incidents in Fields Corner as relayed by C-11 Community Service Officer Mike Keaney.

• On Jan. 24 at around 5:50 p.m., officers identified a gray Infiniti that had been listed stolen from a Planet Fitness location (cars stolen from Planet Fitness lots is a statewide problem, Keaney said). Officers followed the car, with its driver and passengers, and tried to box it in at Park Street, but the driver, said to be 15, took off and hit one of the officers, incurring minor injuries. He led police on a wild chase to Freeport Street, where he hit traffic, turned around, and ran over a police officer’s foot, breaking it.

The driver bailed on Freeport Street and ran behind the IBEW 103 building, where he was apprehended and charged with two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (car) and possession of a stolen vehicle. The car was found in the 1300 block of Dorchester Avenue and the other suspects made good their escape.

• On Jan. 31 at 5 p.m. the C-11 Drug Unit was surveilling Clayton Street on a tip from the neighborhood about drug dealing when officers observing an alleged deal go down pulled over a Ford pickup and later charged a 24-year-old New Hampshire man with Trafficking a Class A drug due to his being found with 177 OxyContin pills. Other units followed and contacted the alleged dealer on Lyons Street. He was found with 478 Adderall pills, 17 grams of cocaine, and a quantity of heroin. The 25-year-old St. Mark’s area man was charged with Trafficking in a Class B drug and other drug offenses.

• On Feb. 2 at 7 p.m. police observed a driver run a stop sign at Arcadia and Adams streets. They followed him and observed him allegedly run a red light at Dorchester Avenue and Adams Street. They pulled him over on Leonard Street and found the 47-year-old man from Fields Corner has had his license suspended for a year. He was charged and the owner of the car was cited for allowing him to drive the vehicle.