Cambridge Zoning Board Approves Takeda Sign Variance 4 to 1 at 585 Kendall Street

CAMBRIDGE — March 26, 2026 — Cambridge zoning board approves Takeda Pharmaceuticals oversized sign for new Kendall Square headquarters. The Cambridge Board of Zoning Appeal voted 4 to 1 at its March 26 meeting to grant Takeda Pharmaceuticals a variance allowing an internally illuminated sign with elements fitting within a roughly 143-square-foot bounding rectangle high on the mechanical penthouse of its new global research headquarters at 585 Kendall Street — more than double the 60-square-foot maximum and well above the 20-foot height cap set by the city's sign ordinance. Attorney Charles Larray of Dane Torpy Larray Weissen and Garner argued that required landscaping, event tents, and a neighboring 13-story building would render a conforming sign "essentially invisible." Board member Jim Monteverde dissented, saying he was "not convinced about the hardship" and noting no alternative sign locations had been presented. The East Cambridge Planning Team voted unanimously to oppose the application, and resident Heather Hoffman called the sign "a billboard," invoking a 2010 petition drive that gathered more than 11,000 verified Cambridge voter signatures against illuminated corporate signs. The board also unanimously approved a special permit allowing the owners of 78 Thorndike Street to raise the building's roof ridge by approximately three feet to restore its Greek Revival character, a design the Cambridge Historical Commission endorsed after rejecting dormer alternatives.