101-103 Morse Street

Reduced Number of Apartments in Morse St. Project Pleases Planning Board

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Developers of the former massage school on Morse Street went back to the drawing board and came back with a new design for an apartment building that pleased that Planning Board. Wednesday night, the Planning Board voted to recommend to the Zoning Board (which will make the final decision on the project) that it approves the latest design. The project will need a special permit to switch from a commercial to a residential use. The first proposal sought to make 45 apartments in the complex at 101-103 Morse Street, just off Watertown Street. The Zoning Board told developers it was too dense, so the designers came back with a 40-unit apartment building in June 2017.

Arsenal Yards

See a Mock-Up of a Taller Tower at the Arsenal Yards Site

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On Monday, June 18, 2018, the developers of the Arsenal Yards project — the former Arsenal Mall — will hold a community meeting to discuss a proposed amendment to allow a building 67 feet higher (197 feet total) than allowed under current zoning. The Town has shared a slideshow that will be used at the meeting which shows a rendering of the taller tower. According to the slides, the taller tower would have the same number of units (122) as the 129-foot-tall tower, but would have a different look. Besides being taller, it would be thinner, and have more glass, according to the rendering. It would also have no studios, but would have a penthouse.

Real Estate

Watertown Colonial on Market for $2 Million, One of Dozens of Open Houses

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A large colonial in Watertown has an asking price of $2 million. There are many more open houses with more down-to-earth prices around town this week. $425,000 – 68 Stuart St. Unit 68, 6 room, 2 bed, 1 bath 2/3 family, Open Houses: Saturday 1-2 Sunday 11-12:30

$485,900 – 9 Wollitzer Lane Unit 9, 5 room, 2 bed, 1f 0h bath 2/3 family, Open Houses: Saturday 11:30-12:30 Sunday 12-1:30

$495,900 – 11 Wollitzer Lane Unit 11, 5 room, 2 bed, 1 bath 2/3 family, Open Houses: Saturday 11:30-12:30 Sunday 12-1:30

$499,500 – 104 Coolidge Hill Road Unit 16, 5 room, 2 bed, 2.5 bath townhouse, Open Houses: Saturday 12-1:30 Sunday 12-1:30

$509,900 – 57 Fayette St. Unit 2, 6 room, 2 bed, 1 bath 2/3 family, Open Houses: Saturday 12-2 Sunday 12-2

$899,900 – 23-25 Adams St., 2 unit, 13 total room, 5 total bedroom 2 family, Open Houses: Friday 12-1:30 Saturday 12-2 Sunday 12-2 Monday 12-2

$649,000 – 90 Edenfield Ave, 6 room, 3 bed, 1.5 bath colonial, Open Houses: Friday 4:30-6 Saturday 1-2:30 Sunday 1-2:30

$599,000 – 87 Watertown St.

Development

Planning Board Approves Fourth Phase of Arsenal Yards, Including the Plaza

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The fourth phase of the renovation of the Arsenal Mall, which will create a plaza surrounded by restaurants and retail stores with apartments on top, got the approval of the Planning Board Wednesday night. 

The two main sections of Phase 4 of the Arsenal Yards project will be built around an area that will be shared by pedestrians and vehicles, and is designed to allow outdoor seating for restaurants that look out on the area. The whole area is designed to be blocked off to traffic and used for events such as a fair, a farmer’s market or other gatherings, the developers told the Planning Board. Building C will have 27,500 sq. ft. of retail and restaurant space on the ground floor, with 130 apartments on five floors of housing above.

65 Grove Street

An Inside Look at Bosch’s Watertown Office Where it Will Develop New A/C, Heating Technology

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Bosch welcomed local officials and the media during the official unveiling of its new research and development facility on Grove Street in Watertown where it will work on air conditioning, heating, and ways to control its products with smartphones or other technology. 

The Bosch Thermotechnology Corp. facility was the first tenant of the renovated 65 Grove Street building. The company occupies the second floor of one half of the building, where it has 45 employees, who work in product development, human resources, sales and marketing, and business development. “Our associates are excited to be here and be here for a long time,” said Vitor Gregorio, regional president of Bosch Thermotechnology. The visual centerpiece of the facility is the Bosch Experience Center, where the company displays air conditioning units and water heaters and furnaces for both residential and commercial use.

Development

Watertown’s I-Cubed Application Still Being Analyzed by State

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The application for $25 million in infrastructure projects in Watertown, and on state lands in town, in return for more jobs and growth by Athenahealth, remains in the hands of State officials. 

The I-Cubed project, which is a partnership between Athenhealth, the Town of Watertown and the Department of Conservation and Recreation (which controls the areas around the Charles River), is being examined by the Department of Revenue (DOR), according to a memo sent to Town Manager Michael Driscoll. The memo sent in an email from attorney Stephen W. DeCourcey of Lynch, DeSimone & Nylen, who represents the Town in the I-Cubed project, reads:
“The Department of Revenue has not completed its financial analysis of the new tax revenues that are expected to be received as a result of Athena’s economic development project on the Arsenal site. This analysis is a prerequisite to the Commonwealth’s approval of the joint application. The DOR is expected to complete its analysis in the next few weeks.” The I-Cubed program is run by the Executive Office of Administration & Finance (A&F).

Business

Arsenal Mall Project Receives Major Investment from JP Morgan

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The owners of Arsenal Yards sent out the following information:
Boylston Properties and J.P. Morgan today announced a $109 million strategic investment from institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan in Boylston Properties’ Arsenal Yards development, a mixed-use destination of the former Arsenal Mall in East End Watertown. With sitework currently underway and upon the first phase opening in 2019, the vibrant urban neighborhood will be more than one million square feet, including 250,000 square feet of shops and eateries, anchored by Roche Bros. and The Majestic Cinema, YardWorks (200,000 sq. ft. of new and existing office and lab space), Blvd & Bond (425 contemporary residences), a 150-room Hampton by Hilton, The Fitness Collection, and a revitalized Arsenal Park with expanded access to the Charles River.

Development

LETTER: Development on Arsenal Street is Changing the East End

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To the editor, and the Watertown community,

I think the thing that bothers me most about this, and many other developments going on around the Boston area, is the fact that none of what I see takes into account the existing residents. There is no thought about who already lives here, and how what they develop will affect the area. There is no thought of including any of the character, the history of the location, buildings, etc., which is very important to the knowledge of how our county was formed. No thought of the people who have made this area what it is … no thought of all of the cultures, especially in East Watertown, that already reside here.