Group Sues City to Stop Installation of Sidewalk Ramps

The Beacon Hill Civic Association filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the City of Boston, arguing that the scheduled disability ramps will compromise the neighborhood’s historical culture.

“The plaintiffs seek to prohibit the City [of Boston] from reconstructing or altering the sidewalks and streetscape in the historic district using historically inappropriate materials and designs,” the Beacon Hill Civic Association said in the complaint filed in Suffolk Superior Court.

City workers began installing the first of more than 250 sidewalk ramps on Tuesday, and the lawsuit was brought on the same day. The ramps are intended to create ease of neighborhood access for people with disabilities.

The Beacon Hill Civic Association does not oppose the sidewalk ramps, but rather the concrete that is being used to create them. Residents prefer that the ramps are made of granite, as that material is appropriate for the architecture of the Colonial-era neighborhood. Mayor Martin Walsh has indicated that the use of granite would prove to be too expensive.

According to the lawsuit, the City of Boston has also failed to obtain the required approval from the Beacon Hill Architectural Commission and the Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC).

A spokeswoman for the mayor says the work will continue despite the suit.

Read the Boston Globe story here.

Learn more about the Beacon Hill Civic Association here.