BOSTON — Cleveland Circle is getting a major facelift, but people who love their neighborhood’s charm and history banded together to make sure it didn't lose its identity.
Wednesday evening, the developers of two new buildings in the area unveiled the crowning touch to the buildings.
A group of residents convinced the company to hold on to the iconic "circle" sign, which they said was an important part of the neighborhood’s history.
They are as much a part of the Boston skyline as the buildings.
“You know, Boston is just a place of signs. Whether it's the Citgo sign or some of the signs you see in the seaport area,” National Development’s Ted Tye commented. “We protect our signs as a piece of history.”
His company is in the process of building two new structures in Cleveland Circle. The iconic "circle" sign marked the home of several theaters throughout the years and will remain when the mixed-use space opens next year.
The iconic sign could have been demolished. Instead, it will serve not only as a landmark, but as a reminder of what one neighborhood came together to do.
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Tye says when the property changed hands, concerned citizens in Brookline and Boston mobilized.
“One of the first things we heard when started talking about redevelopment of the site was, 'please save our sign,’" said Tye.
He says there's history in the neighborhood and the "circle" sign was a part of it.
“Going back to 1940, a theater was built on this site. It was across from one of Boston's first train stations,” he explained.
The circles, each seven feet in diameter, posed a challenge to the architecture. But after refurbishing them with LED lights and cleaning them up, National Development was able to incorporate them into the design.
Tye says it symbolizes both the old and new.
“I think it's a signal that new is coming,” he said. “Cleveland Circle is alive and good things are coming in the future.”
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