Jul 6, 2006 3:00 pm US/Eastern
Official Wants Hatch Shell VIP Seats Eliminated
BOSTON (CBS4) ―
There's a battle brewing over the VIP seats at the Hatch Shell.
A court official claims the trust created by the late Marie Hatch bans any reserved seats there – and if it doesn't change, he's going to sue.
Richard Iannella, the register of Suffolk Probate and Family Court, says he'll file a lawsuit against the Department of Conservation and Recreation if they can't find a way to eliminate the seats, which generally go to event sponsors, advertisers, and executives.
Part of his job as the register is to make sure a person's final wishes are carried out. If they are not, he has to take the matter to court.
Iannella sent a letter to DCR Commissioner Steven Burrington in which he said the trust created by the late Marie Hatch to construct the Hatch Memorial Shell specified the memorial is to remain "open to the public."
Iannella claims the VIP seats treat public property as if it were private property. He says he's been getting complaints about the seats for the last five years.
DCR spokesman Joe O'Keefe said Iannella is misreading the will.
He told CBS4's Joe Shortsleeve the special seats are part of the deal with corporate sponsors – and without them there would be no big name acts for Fourth of July celebration at the Hatch Shell.
"My understanding from the Fourth of July… it's about 200 seats, and that would be about 499,000-plus no-ticketed, public access available seating for the general public."
As a media partner of the city's Fourth of July celebration, several of those reserved seats go to CBS4.
(© 2006 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
