Starbucks Wins Battle for South Boston

A hotly contested storefront in South Boston went the way of the chains this week after the City of Boston’s licensing board approved a Starbucks for the space, Curbed Boston reported. The vacant space at 749 E Broadway has been up for grabs for some time, with neighbors standing in staunch opposition to Starbucks opening there.

In a community meeting in May, people said they worried a Starbucks would siphon business from other local shops, such as PS Gourmet Coffee, Molly Moo’s, Boston Bagel Company, and others, as previously reported. There is already one Starbucks close by, near the Broadway MBTA station.

Initially, the city denied Starbucks a license to operate on the corner of L Street and East Broadway. It delayed a vote on the matter on August 18 and this week decided to award Starbucks the license.

A previous project planned for the space involved Brian Poe, Gordon Wilcox, and Michael Norton, but they decided to find an alternate location for the project.

• A Starbucks is coming to L Street and East Broadway [Curbed]
• Starbucks Gets Cold Shoulder From Southie [EBOS]