Beacon Hill and Suffolk University may have buried the hatchet, but another town-gown battle is brewing in Boston as Fisher College eyes an expansion in Back Bay.
The private liberal arts school recently started mapping out its development plans with the city and just bought an Arlington Street property that sits well beyond its academic core on the first block of Beacon Street.
The moves are rankling residents — who fear more students will settle into new dorms amid their multimillion-dollar condos — and threatening a fragile, decade-long peace between Fisher and an influential neighborhood group.
"Things have shifted from how do we work this out, to how do we stop them," said Peter Sherin, a director at the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay. "And the next thing is how do we get them out."
Neighbors are challenging Fisher's zoning rights to use several buildings for classrooms or dorms, a change they say would effectively create a quad that diminishes the residential character of Beacon Street.
Fisher spokeswoman Jennifer Courtney said the 818-student school operates within the zoning code and is in the early stages of a master plan, a first for Fisher as it eyes "modest" growth in the decade ahead.
"We're not trying to create any enemies," she said. "We're constantly working with the neighbors and there's an open-door policy."
A task force set up by the Boston Redevelopment Authority meets March 28. "We'll work with the institution and the community on a sensible, appropriate and responsible expansion plan," said BRA spokeswoman Melina Schuler.
Fisher was forced to clamp down on disruptive student behavior in 2001 after a shooting outside a dance led to licensing board scrutiny. These days, Fisher responds aggressively to complaints, many of which turn out to be unrelated to its students, Courtney said.
Still, some neighbors wish Fisher would follow the lead of Emerson College, which shifted student housing to the Theatre District. On Beacon Hill, Suffolk University eased tensions by increasing the size of the non-expansion zone around its campus.
Howard Kassler, a neighborhood group leader, remains hopeful the town-gown tussle won't blow up to Suffolk proportions.
"My personal sense is that is not the way it's going," he said. "Like the people on Beacon Hill, we've spent a long time — years and years and years — ensuring the Back Bay remains the Back Bay. The historic district means so much to us."
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