Rally held to save building

 Supporters of the cause to save a 104-year-old Back Bay building of unique architectural style took to the streets yesterday, railing against the city’s decision to allow for its demolition.

One month after the Boston Landmarks Commission denied landmark status for The Shreve’s Building — whose Art Deco facade and copper cornice loom over the intersection of Boylston and Arlington streets — the group publicly expressed its displeasure.

“In a city as preservation-minded as Boston is, we are actually surprised our efforts to save this building have come to this,” said Tony Fusco, president of the Art Deco Society of Boston.

The Nov. 10 BLC decision was its second such ruling on the building. An appeal has been filed in Suffolk Superior Court and international Art Deco experts have weighed in, calling a possible demolition “a horrible mistake.”
The building is one of three on the fringe of the Public Garden that incorporate such a style.

“From the Public Garden you see Boston as it was years ago with very little change and I think it’s important to keep that,” said Dave Friend, a Back Bay resident for 30 years who led the demonstration.

Fusco and Friend said they would welcome an agreement with developer Ronald Druker to keep the facade in front of Druker’s proposed “opulent” eight-story office complex.