Capital One Bank Withdraws Request to Open in Charles Street Market

Linear Retail has withdrawn its request to seek a zoning variance to open a Capital One Bank in the space now occupied by Charles Street Market.

In a letter to the zoning board dated Feb. 24, Linear attorney Dennis Quilty simply wrote: "On behalf of [Linear Retail], I am writing to repectfully request a withdrawal without prejudice of [the application] from the Board's February 28, 2012 public hearing agenda."

A call to Joel Kadis, the Linear partner handling the property, was not immediately returned this afternoon. But a Capital One spokeswoman, Amanda Landers, told the Boston Globe that her company is "currently reevaluating our opportunities in the area and are determining what will work best for us and our business in Boston." Linear can still refile the application.

Although it's not known why Linear withdrew the application, it did face stiff community resistance to the plan. More than 1,200 people had signed a petition in opposition and hundreds wrote letters to the mayor. Community members planned to show up in large numbers to the Tuesday hearing, with a shuttle taking neighbors to City Hall.

Friday afternoon, Suzanne Besser, executive director of the Beacon Hill Civic Association, sent out an email thanking neighbors for their support: "We cannot thank the community enough for its unprecedented show of support and unity from the day we first learned about the proposed use of the property until now. And, it looks like our efforts really paid off. By working together we all made this happen."