Studio 52 is a community artist space located in the heart of Allston, and is proud to support the Boston music scene and local artist community.
Up until a few years ago, there wasn’t much to cause a noisy commotion around the Blue Hills Bank Pavilion in Boston’s Seaport District. But the upstart neighborhood adjacent to South Boston has experienced significant commercial and residential development recently, and now Live Nation New England President Don Law fears a proposed public heliport slotted for nearby Drydock 4 “would likely lead to [the Pavilion’s] demise.”
According to a report in the Boston Business Journal, Law attended a meeting this week hosted by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, and he spoke strongly against a heliport that would be situated on a pier directly behind the outdoor concert facility. The heliport was promised to General Electric, the report states, as part of the relocation package to bring the company’s global headquarters to Boston.
At the public meeting, Law read a letter that was co-signed by Legal Sea Foods CEO Roger Berkowitz.
“The noise caused by take-offs and landings will pose a major nuisance to neighborhood businesses and their customers,” Law and Berkowitz wrote, via the Journal. “Proximity of the proposed heliport would jeopardize the venue’s ability to attract world-class entertainment, and would likely lead to its demise. …Beyond business considerations, as important as they are, this project will tarnish the image of the South Boston waterfront as a desirable neighborhood.”
Legal Sea Foods argued that the noise caused by the public heliport, which would operate under control of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, would significantly disrupt its outdoor dining seasons. The Local 11 chapter of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, which staffs the Pavilion, also spoke out against the proposal. Yankee Lobster Company raised concerns about the heliport’s pollution impact on Boston Harbor, from which the restaurant pulls water.
Blue Hills Bank Pavilion is owned by Live Nation, and houses a seating capacity of approximately 5,000. Upcoming shows this spring and summer there include Coheed & Cambria (May 9), Third Eye Blind (June 21), and Cheap Trick and Foreigner (July 17). Dozens more are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
A second public meeting is scheduled for February 6 at the Massachusetts State House.