Debate over height versus preservation has only intensified as PLAN: Downtown enters the final stages of its zoning reforms.

A public meeting on July 10 saw more advocacy than usual in favor of permissive development standards, the meeting’s focus on Chinatown bringing the displacement of low income residents to the fore.

PLAN: Downtown has at this point settled into a framework of splitting the Downtown into skyline districts that allow hundreds of feet higher development than before and sky-low districts meant to preserve the character and street level atmosphere of the area. The borders of those districts, however, are still under contention.

A persistent flashpoint has been the intersection of Bromfield and Washington Streets in Downtown Crossing. It’s the site of a proposed 400-foot office building and would be in a sky-low district were it not for that border swerving outward and back in again to ensure it’s instead in skyline zoning, something critics have assailed as a developer led spot zone.

“The design guidelines were so well-crafted in describing the ladder blocks, these human scaled footprints that define a very unique character area. The idea of creating a spot zone that could go over 400 feet depending on shadow completely undercuts that logic. It should be removed, and the Article 80 process can decide whether a variance is appropriate. This layout will remove the community’s ability to weigh in,” said Kimberly Trask, an attorney and 35-year Downtown resident.

Though that intersection has been a consistent punching bag throughout the planning process, this meeting did see some defense from Mike Nichols, president of the Downtown Business Improvement District.

“We’re encouraged that the city has heard the feedback that there are a number of high priority development sites Downtown, including the 11 Bromfield site. They should necessarily be a part of the skyline district and prioritized for transformative development. That isn’t spot zoning, it’s understanding that the evolution of a neighborhood, and what will carry it across generations, is new growth,” he said.

Development even got some support from Chinatown residents, where a lower income population hasn’t been spared Boston’s rising housing costs.

“As a Chinatown resident, which statistically has a lot of low income and workingclass families, a lot of our residents have an interest in increased density. We’re being priced out. There’s a tremendous amount of housing pressure. We appreciate preservation work, the history is part of why I live here, but it can’t come at the expense of our residents,” said Betty Chen. Still, preservation advocates maintained their strong criticism of some height allowances, arguing that residents don’t need to sacrifice their sunlight to build more housing.

If those concerns are to find their way into written law, it will happen in the next month or not at all. The Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) has opened another public comment period for this latest draft, likely the last before PLAN: Downtown is finalized. That will close on August 2, followed by one last public meeting and an anticipated vote by the BPDA board during its August meeting.

After that it heads to the Zoning Board of Appeals before becoming law.