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Zoning Bulletin November 25, 2013 I Volume 7 I Issue 22 <br />See also: Doyen v. ZoningBd. ofAppeals of Town of Essex, 67 Conn. <br />App. 597, 789 A.2d 478 (2002). <br />Proceedings —City approves <br />institutional master plan for college <br />Abutters appeal, contending approval <br />process was adjudicatory and subject to <br />state constitutional right to independent <br />judges <br />Citation: Alford v. Boston Zoning Com'n, 84 Mass. App. Ct. 359, <br />2013 WL 5526628 (2013) <br />MASSACHUSETTS (10/09/13)—This case addressed the issue of <br />whether the City of Boston's Institutional Master Plan ("IMP") review <br />process, which reviews large-scale educational or health care institu- <br />tions' expansion projects, is adjudicatory and thus subject to Article 29 <br />of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights, which requires "an <br />impartial interpretation of the laws, and administration of justice" with <br />trial by "judges free, impartial and independent . . .." <br />The Background/Facts: In the spring of 2003, Boston College <br />("BC") embarked on a strategic planning process to redevelop its <br />Chestnut Hill and Brighton campuses in Boston, Massachusetts (the <br />"City."). BC purchased 65 acres of land and set about developing a <br />long-teilii comprehensive campus plan. <br />Under art. 80D of the City's zoning code ("art. 80D"), when <br />educational or health care institutions with more than 150,000 square <br />feet seek to expand by more than 20,000 gross square feet, they must <br />file for review an Institutional Master Plan ("IMP") with the Boston <br />Redevelopment Authority ("BRA"). The purpose of the IMP review <br />"is to provide for the well -planned development of Institutional Uses in <br />order to enhance their public service and economic development role <br />in surrounding neighborhoods." (Art. 80D, § 80D-1.) <br />In June 2008, BC filed its IMP with the BRA. Among other things, <br />the IMP included the following projects: 790 additional beds for on - <br />campus students; a 285,000-square-foot university center; a 350-space <br />addition to an existing garage; and a 500-space parking facility. <br />In January 2009, the BRA voted to approve the IMP and send it to <br />the City's zoning commission (the "Zoning Commission") for approval. <br />On June 10, 2009, the Zoning Commission adopted the final IMP and <br />the City mayor signed it. The IMP was expected to produce: $1 billion <br />© 2013 Thomson Reuters 9 <br />