Apple Store in Boston?

Apple plans today to present several building designs for its "signature" Boston store at a hearing before the Back Bay Architectural Commission, according to a report by The Boston Globe. The Cupertino-based company is seeking to demolish a small building at 815 Boylston St.--that currently houses a Copy Cop store and construct--so that it can build a three-story building with a glass facade across from the Prudential Center. The new store, designed by San Francisco architecture firm Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, would be just over 22,000 square feet and feature a spiral stair case in the middle of the store. Following concerns last March that previous designs for the proposed Apple Store structure didn't fit well with the rest of neighborhood, the company has proposed several designs that would add vertical columns and divide the faade in nine sections. The revised gives the facade a boxier look, appearing to fit in more with adjacent buildings, according to the report.

Apple is reportedly presenting different ideas, "variations on the original design that take into account input we've gotten from the staff and members of the commission to tie the faade more into other buildings in the area," according to lawyer representing Apple.

Apple's lawyer told The Globe that Apple delayed its previous two hearings with the commission because "they just weren't ready. They spend a lot of time with these signature stores, and they don't rush into anything."

Apple has previously said that it would abandon its plans if the existing building can't be demolished--which requires the approval of the Back Bay Architectural District.

The report notes that Apple already operates stores in Braintree, Burlington, Cambridge, Chestnut Hill, and Peabody.

by MacNN Staff