New Wellesley Square high rise is for the birds

May 28, 2023 by Bob Brown 2 Comments

Proposed housing developments in town have grabbed headlines of late, but a new high rise in Wellesley Square has flown under the radar.

Fortunately, Swellesley reader Stephen Forasté—thanks to his eagle-eyed daughter—caught this discreet new home on camera earlier this month (look closely inside the lantern in the video).

New #Wellesley Square high rise is for the birds https://t.co/9XQgHTQnZ0 pic.twitter.com/cag8Kdi7t8
— swellesley (@swellesley) May 29, 2023

bird wellesley — Photo courtesy of Stephen Forasté

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Learn about 8 Cliff Road housing development plans

May 18, 2023 by Bob Brown 2 Comments

The Building a Better Wellesley housing advocacy group will host an online discussion on Sunday, May 21 at 3:30-5pm about the proposed housing development at 8 Cliff Road. Registration has opened.

The developers recently made a presentation about their plans to the Wellesley Select Board (“Wellesley’s Cliff Estates gets its turn with proposed condo development”).

From Building a Better Wellesley:

This Sunday, Victor Sheen and Peter Holland, will share their proposed housing development at 8 Cliff Road. Join us to learn about the project and discuss the benefits that housing at this location could have for Wellesley. What housing challenges could is solve? Are there ways to improve the project to better meet Wellesley’s housing needs?

In 2021, after several years of being tied up in a family estate, 489 Worcester St was put up for auction. It didn’t sell that day, but Mr. Sheen and Mr. Holland were able to buy the property later. Since then, they’ve purchase two additional properties along Cliff Road (4 and 14), to create a, roughly, 4 acre parcel. On May 2, they presented a draft project plan to the Select Board. Now called “8 Cliff Road”, this property is about a 3 minute walk from the Hills train station. The size and the location open up interesting possibilities. The draft plan contained 69 “for sale” units, 9 of which would be classified as “affordable.” (That is about 13%.) They are also proposing a high number of 3-bedroom units, hoping to attract both downsizing empty-nesters and young families.

Any multi-family project at this location will require rezoning, most likely through town meeting action. Mr. Sheen and Mr. Holland are interested in hearing our thoughts. Join us on Sunday via Zoom, to listen to their presentation and give constructive feedback.

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Wellesley’s Cliff Estates gets its turn with proposed condo development

May 4, 2023 by Bob Brown 7 Comments

The development of new condos and apartments is changing the face of Wellesley real estate bit by bit from the Belclare to The Nines and from Weston Road to Linden Street to Burke Lane. The latest proposal, dubbed 8 Cliff Road, envisions 60 market rate condos and 9 units classified as affordable situated across 4 acres at the intersection of Cliff Road and Rte. 9 (aka, Worcester Street).

The project team, which gobbled up a prominent property at 489 Worcester Rd. with a recent messy background for $2.3M along with 4 and 14 Cliff Rd., has begun doing the rounds at Wellesley government bodies. The developers started with the Wellesley Housing Development Corporation in March (see start of Wellesley Media recording), and this week, went before the Select Board (see start of Wellesley Media recording). They’ve also reached out to the fire and engineering departments to discuss public safety and infrastructure issues.

As word of the project has emerged, neighbors have started to wonder how the construction, stormwater management and traffic will impact their lives, as heard during the Select Board meeting. In response, the town has dedicated a chunk of its website to 8 Cliff Road and Wellesley Executive Director Meghan Jop has started a mailing list for concerned residents.

Wellesley, which in 2018 established a housing production plan to help it achieve state goals for affordable housing and fend off unfriendly development projects, has since reached those state thresholds and continued on a path toward trying to diversify the town’s housing stock beyond unaffordable for most. Grassroots efforts such as Building a Better Wellesley have arisen to advocate for affordable and attainable housing in town, and the state has introduced new multi-family zoning requirements for communities like Wellesley that are along MBTA lines.

The developers of 8 Cliff Road are no strangers to Wellesley multifamily projects, bringing the 35 “meticulously crafted” condos and 4 affordable units of Terrazza on Linden Street and the 26 condos of the Bristol on Weston Road for “connoisseurs of the good life,” plus 2 affordable units. They tried to jam more units into the projects initially, but scaled back after negotiations with the town.

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Finding pricing information on those projects’ websites is challenging at best, but listings can be seen online in the $1M-$3M range.

Developer Victor Sheen wouldn’t be nailed down on pricing for 8 Cliff Road upon questioning during the Select Board meeting, though said the project would be aimed at downsizers and families, and tend more toward 3-bedroom units than the 2-bedroom units mainly found at the earlier developments. He said the units would probably be priced lower than for the other projects. Affordable units would include those at 80% of area median income, but depending upon how the project is zoned, could include other pricing levels. Sheen said he’d like to see playgrounds included on the property in light of the condos being aimed in part at young families (this is a subject the Board has been asking about, including at The Nines, which doesn’t yet have a playground).

The developer began his Select Board presentation (see presentation embedded below) with story time, making reference to Wellesley’s origins as a transit-oriented community in the late 1800s with the introduction of the railways here and the emergence of Wellesley Hills (formerly known as Grantville). The properties acquired are just a few minutes by foot from the Wellesley Hills commuter rail station, though the development will have ample underground parking for residents, who more likely than not will be getting around via their own vehicles than relying on the commuter rail’s limited schedule. Sheen appealed to the Board’s appetite for green developments by stating that they are “exploring the possibility of this being a fossil fuel-free building.”

8 cliff rd — Landscape plan for 8 Cliff Road

This 8 Cliff Road property has lots more space than either the Weston Road or Delanson/Linden Street projects, so Sheen described extensive landscaping opportunities, and touted an A-list architect brought on board to ensure the aesthetics of the project “celebrates the neighborhood.” There will be an aim to buffer the dwellings from Cliff Road through landscaping and retaining walls, and there are plans to retain and enhance stone walls and apple trees to maintain the property’s legacy. Water elements could be incorporated into the landscape design to lessen the impact to residences of Rte. 9 traffic noise.

The main 3-story building was envisioned in a U-shape when Sheen presented before the Housing Development Corp., but has since morphed into a shape that resembles no letter, but that I think I’ve seen before in the game of “Perfection.” Sheen described ingress and egress plans, including the widening of the 14 Cliff Rd., driveway, designed to queue up traffic within the property itself as opposed to overwhelming Cliff Road or Rte. 9. The main building would be complemented with a series of carriage houses.

From the town’s perspective, it will work with the developer on possible zoning approaches, and this could lead to an article at a Special Town Meeting in the fall if things move along swiftly. The Weston Road and Delanson/Linden Street projects started as 40B plans that give developers zoning breaks in exchange for delivering a certain percentage of affordable units, though wound up being built under Resident Overly Incentive districts with fewer affordable units.

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Pinnacle Group now based at Douglas Elliman Realty in Wellesley Square

March 28, 2023 by admin Leave a Comment

SPONSORED CONTENT: Douglas Elliman Realty, one of the largest independent residential real estate brokerages in the United States, has welcomed the top-producing Pinnacle Group, established by Elaine Bannigan, to the firm. The group comprises an eight-person team, including Cece Yan, Elyse Marsh, Jane Neilson, Susan Bevilacqua, Danielle Comella, Maureen McCaffrey and Susan Lyman. The Pinnacle Group is now based out of Douglas Elliman’s new office in Wellesley, Mass., at 40 Central Street.

“We could not be more thrilled to welcome The Pinnacle Group,” says Scott Durkin, president and chief executive officer of Douglas Elliman Realty. “Elaine has grown to become a pillar of the Wellesley community. We applaud her success and look forward to driving the team’s business to the next level at Elliman.”

A force in the Massachusetts real estate market for 37 years, Bannigan has won several awards including the Better Business Bureau 2006 Torch Award for Ethics and Excellence, Business Professional of the Year from Wellesley Chamber of Commerce, and the Leadership Award from Wellesley Chamber of Commerce. In 2022, The Pinnacle Group’s total sales volume reached an impressive $164,643,000, with top sales including the complete sellout of Fieldstone Way, a development of 44 luxury townhomes in Wellesley.

“Douglas Elliman has welcomed our team with open arms,” says Elaine Bannigan, founder of Pinnacle Residential Properties. “We are so impressed by the firm’s first-class resources in public relations, technology and marketing and look forward to helping Elliman expand its presence and reputation as a full-service, luxury brokerage throughout Massachusetts.”

[Read more…]

Wellesley residential real estate sales: February, 2023

March 11, 2023 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

A listing of Wellesley residential real estate sales (for more than $100*) recorded in February, 2023 at the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds.

2 Kipling Rd. $3,502,000

21 Cushing Rd. $3,325,000

130 Great Plain Ave. $2,995,000

115 Woodlawn Ave. $2,450,000

38 Woodcliff Rd. $2,200,000

61 Eisenhower Cir. $2,000,000

87 Parker Rd. $1,865,000

40 Haven Rd. $1,775,000

10 Longfellow Rd. $1,650,000

408 Weston Rd. $1,275,000

294 Weston Rd. $990,000

85 Grove St. $989,000

94 Great Plain Ave. $900,000

63 Russell Rd. $740,000

*There are many deals for $100 or less, often involved in trust transactions.

Wellesley Planning Board puts brakes on article to rezone Sisters of Charity property

March 2, 2023 by Bob Brown 1 Comment

The Wellesley Planning Board, after listening to another line-up of neighbors opposed to a rezoning plan for the Sisters of Charity property at 125 Oakland St., voted unanimously on Tuesday to take “no action” on Article 42 at Annual Town Meeting (see discussion shortly after the 1-hour mark of the Wellesley Media recording).

The article, sponsored by the board after it was approached by the proponent late last year, is aimed at amending the zoning map to include the Sisters of Charity property—which is situated next to Centennial Reservation—within a residential incentive overlay (RIO) district. Rezoning would allow for additional uses, such as multifamily housing (340 unit maximum), retail space, assisted/independent senior living, and nursing home/skilled nursing (not all of these uses together). The property is zoned as an educational district, which allows for educational uses and housing, and that zoning would remain.

While some residents applauded rezoning as a way to help address the town’s desire to diversity and expand its housing stock, most of those who wrote or called in asked the board to table the article. They cited concerns about traffic, the environment, and safety.

The Sisters of Charity seek to rezone the property to help them sell it. This will enable them to stabilize their financials and allow their members to live out their retirements there. Residents said they want to support a way for the Sisters of Charity to stay, but had issues with this rezoning approach.

Attorney David Himmelberger, representing the Sisters of Charity, said near the outset of the Planning Board hearing on Feb. 28 that his client wants to have the existing retirement and skilled nursing/rehab facilities to continue to operate under a new for-profit or non-profit owner. Acknowledging the biggest area concern during the last hearing on this subject was the development of traditional multi-family housing units, the Sisters would be “willing to entertain putting a deed restriction on the property” to preclude such a use, the attorney said.

After some 20 residents spoke over the span of about an hour, the board had a lively discussion of its own about the article.

“I as a Planning Board member don’t have all the answers I need in order to recommend this move forward,” said Patty Mallett. “I would want to know everything that the people were asking tonight. We do have the competing interest of wanting to increase affordable housing in town but I don’t really seeing how the project as it stands today really identifies how we would meet that goal…”

Tom Taylor agreed, describing the plan as not vetted enough, and suggesting other options might prove worthier. “At the end of the day, the chance that the buildings get knocked down by a developer and build 340 units is really small…but it’s not zero,” he said.

Board Chair Jim Roberti acknowledged that in initially sponsoring the article, neither the board nor Sisters of Charity knew where the public stood on the proposal, as they now do. Neither did the board or Planning Department have the resources to socialize the proposal and see it through, he said.

Board member Marc Charney did raise the idea that even if the board isn’t strongly in favor of the article at this point, it could pass the article through and let Town Meeting decide on it. “There are elements of this, a lot actually, that do fit into aspirational goals that we as a Planning Department and Planning Board support…,” he said. Charney referred to the site as being “a fully developed site, there is asphalt throughout this entire site, there are many buildings there, it is not like the North 40.”

The site was identified in the town’s 2018 Housing Production Plan as 1 of 4 “opportunity areas where Chapter 40B comprehensive permits would be an appropriate vehicle for providing higher-density multifamily development.”

Board member Kathleen Woodward said, “What I want is the opportunity for everyone to take a breath, look at the options, get people comfortable with what might possibly go there… it happened too fast.”

In the end, the board voted unanimously to take no action on the article.

Planning Director Eric Arbeene concluded that “the problem’s not going to go away” for the Sisters of Charity, who need to sell the property to strengthen their financial situation and ensure continuation of their facilities. “We have to come up with some kind of solution,” he said.

The Sisters will look to find a non-profit buyer to take over operation of the facilities, or work with the town to try to come up with narrower zoning that could work for a for-profit buyer. The Sisters do not plan to move the article forward at this point.

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Does Wellesley need a housing coordinator?

February 27, 2023 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

The Wellesley Planning Board at its Tuesday night (Feb. 28) meeting will discuss the possibility of adding a housing coordinator to the town’s administration as a way to help address what seems like an increasingly unwieldy number of possible projects. While Wellesley has reached its state-required number of affordable housing units, efforts are underway to address needs for a wider variety of housing options for everyone from down-sizers to town employees, and to comply with new rules like the state’s multifamily zoning requirement for communities near MBTA stations.

Chair Jim Roberti broached the topic at the board’s Feb. 6 meeting (about 1-hour, 48-minute mark of the Wellesley Media recording), noting that he had been in touch with a housing coordinator in Groton, Mass. (pop. 11,000-plus), who works part-time for that community and whose salary is funded through the Community Preservation Committee (Wellesley’s CPC will take part in the Feb. 28 meeting). Groton’s Fran Stanley has agreed to take part at the Wellesley Planning Board’s Feb. 28 meeting, which might also include input from those who have reached out to communities such as Arlington and Needham regarding their housing coordination efforts. Coordinators can keep communities on top of housing-related grant opportunities, among other things.

Getting the discussion going now could leave Planning enough time to include such a position in its proposed budget, if it decides to go that way, for Town Meeting at the end of March.

The Select Board recently has discussed the possibility of adding a transportation coordinator to its budget, but decided at its Feb. 7 meeting to hold off. During that last Select Board discussion on that topic, board member Ann-Mara Lanza (also co-founder of the Building a Better Wellesley affordable/attainable housing advocacy group) made a plea for considering a housing coordinator before a transportation one (not that she doesn’t see value in a transportation coordinator).

She pointed to the town’s 2018 Housing Production Plan calling for creation of a housing coordinator to take a proactive approach. That plan reads in part “there needs to be a central ‘point person’ with the time, authority, and resources to work on housing policy and housing strategies in Wellesley.”

Lanza said during the Feb. 7 Select Board meeting:”If we want to do something about our carbon footprint, let’s figure out how to create housing that allows people who work in Wellesley to live in Wellesley, significantly reducing long commutes and traffic.”

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Wellesley Town Meeting article on Sisters of Charity property getting neighbors’ attention

February 21, 2023 by Bob Brown 1 Comment

The distinctive Sisters of Charity property at 125 Oakland St., set against the backdrop of Centennial Reservation, is the subject of a Wellesley Town Meeting article that’s been making its preliminary rounds through committees and boards. The Advisory Committee was briefed on the article on Feb. 15 (presentation embedded below), and the Planning Board has an agenda item on it for its Feb. 21 meeting.

(Update 2/22/23: See Wellesley Media recording of Feb. 21 meeting, which features an hour-plus hearing during which residents spoke both in favor of and against Article 42. Those in favor spoke of the benefits of possibly increasing the town’s housing stock, while those against raised issues that included increased traffic, environmental impacts, and opportunities for other possible developments, such as an arts center. Another Planning Board hearing will be slated for Feb. 28.)

Article 42, sponsored by the Planning Board, seeks to amend the zoning map to include the 14-acre Sisters of Charity property within a residential incentive overlay (RIO) district that would allow for additional uses, such as multifamily housing (340 unit maximum), mixed use including up to 10,000 sq. ft. of retail space, assisted/independent senior living (maximum of 150 units), and nursing home/skilled nursing (maximum of 250 beds). Not all of these uses could be done together. Proposed developments would require Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, and other approvals. The property is currently zoned as an educational district, which allows for educational uses and housing, and that zoning would remain.

The property currently is used by the Sisters of Charity as a retirement spot for its members, and is an allowed use on the property under a religious exemption. The order began its work in Halifax, Nova Scotia 175 years ago, and came to Massachusetts in the late 1800s to teach.

Both the nonprofit Marillac Residence residential care facility (76 beds) and nonprofit Elizabeth Seton skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility (84 beds) operate on the land. The sisters who live on the property aren’t getting any younger, and while additional sisters are expected to retire there, the order itself isn’t growing—so the outfit is looking to sell the property with an eye toward the future. The plan would be to keep the care facilities operating through the sisters’ lifetime, which could be another 30-plus years, but give any buyer the opportunity to further develop the site, which they could not do under the current zoning rules.

Passing Article 42 would help out the Sisters of Charity but also align with town goals, including an increase in multifamily housing. Planning Board Chair Jim Roberti said during the Advisory meeting that this was among the sites identified in the town’s Housing Production Plan for this possible purpose. Town Executive Director Meghan Jop said that using a RIO in this area could be an example of where the town is heading. “Instead of just aligning zoning with what we want to see for a project, which has been the Wellesley Way for a little bit, we really need to be thinking forward so that as developers come in they know the rules of the road and how to proceed…” What’s more, private development of the land could reap the town tax revenue—the current use is tax exempt.

The property has some development challenges, including that it’s located next to a wetlands buffer and wetlands, and nearby a neighborhood. Future uses of the property is what has some neighbors concerned, and they’re rallying to speak up at the Planning Board meeting. Advisory Committee members during their briefing by Planning raised numerous questions about what the maximum buildout might look like, noting that Town Meeting is going to want to know that. Without such detail, “you’re going to get an awful lot of pushback,” one member said.

The Friends of Brookside neighborhood group has encouraged those in the area to attend the Planning Board meeting online and reach out the the board with questions or concerns. The group over the weekend submitted a petition signed by 200-plus people to the Planning Board that asks for the article to be withdrawn. It reads in part: “We have not had the appropriate time to understand this complex rezoning proposal occurring in a residential neighborhood and the Town’s largest conservation area. We need to allow time to engage with The Sisters, neighbors, abutters (including Centennial, Mass Bay, and the Country Club), and all town residents in thoughtful dialogue concerning the multi-faceted issues raised by Article 42 for stakeholders. The Public Hearing is also scheduled during School vacation week which is not appropriate.”

If you’d like to see the Planning Board post legal notices on The Swellesley Report, let them know. Some bodies within town government now do this, in addition to posting them on the town website and in print newspapers.

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‘Zero interest’ in Wellesley Office Park hotel, but developers could bite on 250 more residential units

January 10, 2023 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

Wellesley’s Select Board has voted to support a Town Meeting article that would amend a zoning bylaw to allow up to 250 additional multi-family housing units to be built at the Wellesley Office Park site. That would bring the total of such units that could be developed on the John Hancock-owned property between Rtes. 9 and 128 near the Newton line to 850—some 350 “luxury” apartment units have been built to date as “The Nines” complex.

The Select Board discussed the matter at its Dec. 20 meeting (see Wellesley Media recording about 43 minutes in), a night after the Planning Board did likewise.

Peter Tamm, a real estate attorney with Goulston & Storrs, pledged that John Hancock/Manulife would partner with the town to rework 2019’s 40R development agreement that complements the bylaw approved at 2019’s Special Town Meeting to ensure any necessary changes that would support the increased multi-family unit allowance (more on Chapter 40R). Changes to that development agreement would only be valid if Town Meeting approved the proposed bylaw amendment.

Tamm described changes to the bylaw as being “surgical”—in other words, precise—and not wholesale changes to the arrangement for what the property owner is looking to re-market as Wellesley Park (without the “Office” in the middle). Not to say there won’t be some offices remaining at the 26-acre, 8-building property, all of which John Hancock is now marketing for development. The proposed change could improve flexibility for developers, increase the land value, and boost the town’s tax revenue.

“There’s zero interest in developing a hotel there,” Tamm said, referring to the current allowance for a 175-room hospitality development (he cited the unique negative impact that the pandemic has had on this industry). Adding up to 250 more residential units, perhaps including condos, would be a way to make use of the space to the benefit of the town and state in their effort to provide more housing. Tamm said he’d lean toward defining 25% of any new units as “affordable,” based on a percentage of Area Median Income, though said a range of price points could be considered within that 25%. One benefit to the town of allowing for more housing through a swap in uses for the property is that Wellesley could get around $700K from the state’s Department of Housing & Community Development as a 40R payment, he said. More than 60 of the units would need to be affordable, he said.

Unlike with The Nines, when it was first proposed, there is no specific project in mind yet this time around. Still, Select Board member Beth Sullivan Woods said it would be great to get a clearer picture of John Hancock’s “big vision” for the property so that the town can get a handle on what the safety, infrastructure, school, and other service needs might be in the long run (so far 30 of an anticipated 65 kids have become residents at The Nines). There could be the possibility of public safety equipment getting housed on site.

Select Board member Ann-Mara Lanza expressed hope that if more residential units are built in Wellesley Park (there, it’s catching on) that they will come at more reasonable price levels.

“I don’t think I’m alone in being saddened by the market rents at The Nines. I don’t think any of us anticipated it being that high,” she said.

Current nth degree pricing includes monthly rents of $2,700 for a studio, $7,850 for a 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom unit, and $2,100 for an “affordable” 1-bedroom, 1-bathroom unit (88 of The Nines units are deemed affordable per state guidelines). If this new proposal pans out, it’s unclear whether this possible new mix of 250 condos and apartments would get built before or after the originally defined 250 apartments that are allowed.

The Nines proved to be a key development in Wellesley’s effort to meet the state threshold for having at least 10% of its housing stock deemed affordable. Reaching that mark puts the town in a position to stave off some unfriendly development projects.

One challenge for the town now is helping make this island of housing at Wellesley Park, bordered by highways and the Charles River, more of a neighborhood. While pains were taken to make the development a green one, with electrical energy at the forefront, this is not an easy place to get anywhere else from unless you have a car or are a brave cyclist (well, there is the river and residents do have kayak access from a very nice walking woodland trail).

“Creating more of a neighborhood there would be a desirable thing for the people who already live there and for the town to have more of a critical mass over there,” Select Board Chair Lise Olney said.

More critical mass of residents or employees there is what’s needed to encourage retail development at what Tamm referred to as both “an outpost” and “secluded.” A firm marketing retail space at the property, doing what real estate marketers do, makes its pitch that “the project provides a restaurant or retail tenant exceptional connectivity and accessibility to the immediate and neighboring communities of Wellesley, Newton, Needham and beyond.”

Select Board member Tom Ulfelder noted that there are restrictions on the types of retail development allowed there based on the existing agreement, meaning you might see a 7-11, but not a Wegmans. He recommended that the Board get a refresh on the development agreement at a future meeting.