Chiofaro blasts mayor, review of zoning laws

In a rare public challenge to Menino, Chiofaro held a press conference and rebuked the mayor for refusing to compromise on the size and scale of his proposed development at the site of the Harbor Garage, between Boston Harbor and the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway. Chiofaro wants to build two towers, the taller topping out at 625 feet. The zoning review recommended new buildings on the property be no higher than 200 feet.

“The city is letting the narrow interest of a small group, and personal vendettas, guide their decisions,’’ said Chiofaro.

Menino did not respond directly to Chiofaro yesterday. In the past he has not been reluctant to rebut Chiofaro, accusing the developer of brazenly pursuing profits by proposing a project that would cast shadows over the Greenway and waterfront, public assets that have been improved with billions in taxpayer dollars.

Moreover, officials at the Boston Redevelopment Authority, the agency responsible for reviewing Chiofaro’s proposal, said Chiofaro is the one holding up the process by refusing to respond to requests for additional information. The BRA asked him for more information as far back as July 2009, but officials assert that he hasn’t responded.

“If they want to get serious about engaging in the real issues of redevelopment, they should respond to the environmental concerns we raised in our review,’’ said Susan Elsbree, a spokeswoman for the BRA.

Even without provoking the mayor, Chiofaro faces a long road to get his project approved. He must go through a lengthy environmental review by the state, as well as convince the city to support a petition to the state Legislature that would amend waterfront regulations that currently block his project.

Given the animus between Chiofaro and City Hall, it appears unlikely the two sides will join forces in that effort anytime soon.

During his comments yesterday, Chiofaro said the city has refused to engage him in his project and urged people to tell Menino they support what he’s trying to build. “We intend to keep the pressure up until we get honest answers from the person pulling the strings on this process, and we all know who that is,’’ he said, referring to Menino.

Chiofaro said he is “flexible’’ about his proposal and is willing to lower the height of the towers, but released his own analysis that the complex would have to be at least 500 feet tall to make it economically feasible, meaning there remains a huge gulf between him and the city.