Business

Watertown Mall Officials Welcome New Hotel, Additions at Arsenal Project

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The Watertown Mall sits across the street from the Arsenal Project, and next to where the new hotel will be built, and that suits the management of the Watertown Mall just fine. The Watertown Mall, which is home to Target and Best Buy, along with several other stores and the Registry of Motor Vehicles, would benefit by more people coming to that area of Arsenal Street, said Patricia Stenson, manager of the Watertown Mall. The owners of the new hotel, Boylston Properties, also owns the Arsenal Project (formerly the Arsenal Mall) has plans to upgrade the mall and add restaurants. The group has also purchased the Verizon Facility located near Nichols Avenue but has an address of 480 Arsenal Street. It could become office space.

Development

Residents Worry Eastside CVS Would Change Their Neighborhood

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The CVS/Pharmacy proposed in East Watertown would change the area, and make an already bad traffic situation worse, residents said at a meeting on the project. The store would go where the gas station now sits at the corner of Mt. Auburn and Arlington streets. It would also replace a small office building and the Elks Club and the parking lot would link to the lot on Wells Avenue. The project would make improve the Coolidge Square area by adding a pharmacy and sprucing up the site, said Bill York, attorney representing the developers at the meeting held at the Apartments at Coolidge School.

Development

Arsenal Street Hotel Gets Final Approval from Zoning Board

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Watertown will be getting a six-story hotel on Arsenal Street after the Zoning Board of Appeals approved the project Wednesday night. The 148-room hotel will be a Residence Inn by Marriott, said Bill McQuillan, the principal of developer Boylston Properties. Rooms in the hotel, which is aimed at business travelers, will cost about $175 a night, but prices fluctuate higher or lower depending on demand, McQuillan said. A number of Town Councilors applauded the project. “Some of us, including myself,  have been anxiously looking to bring a hotel to the Watertown community for the number of benefits it could bring,” said Town Council President Mark Sideris.

Development

Sideris Calls for All Developers in Town to Come Talk About Their Plans

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Town Council President Mark Sideris wants to get developers of all projects planned for Watertown to come and tell residents what they have planned for their property. Tuesday night the Town Council declined to approve a moratorium on developments on Arsenal Street, but decided to fast-track creating design standards and design guidelines for all developments in town. Sideris said he ran the idea past Director of Community Development and Planning Steve Magoon, who advised against having a developer summit. “I am not going to listen to him,” Sideris said. “All people with projects in the East End, the West End and the rest of town will come and talk about what they want to bring forward.

Development

Town Council Rejects Moratorium, Will Fast Track New Design Guidelines

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The proposed moratorium that would have temporarily halted development on Arsenal Street was rejected by the Town Council Tuesday night, but instead voted to quickly develop guidelines and standards for how projects can be built across town. A group of residents petitioned the Council to put in the moratorium, and Tuesday’s special Town Council meeting was scheduled to address the issue. Community Development and Planning Director Steve Magoon advised the Council that a moratorium would send the wrong message to developers. “It can send the message we are a community closed for business and not a place to invest in,” Magoon said. In addition, the moratorium can take time to go into effect.

Development

Zoning Board Approves Major Arsenal Street Project

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The major residential and retail project at 202-204 Arsenal Street received final approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals Wednesday night. 

The project includes a four-story, 297-unit apartment building (with 30 affordable rate units), as well as an 80-seat restaurant and a 33,000-square-foot market on Arsenal Street, a little east of Irving Street. The Zoning Board gave its approval after a lengthy discussion and with certain conditions, said Watertown Community Development and Planning Director Steve Magoon. Among the conditions that were already recommended by town Planning staff were that the developers contribute to a transportation management association (TMA) to provide additional public transit to the area. Also, the project will also make improvements to the Community Path along the length of the project. Tuesday night the Zoning Board added some conditions, Magoon said.

Development

Residents Want Developments to Take Account for Nearby Neighborhoods

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With developments along Arsenal Street coming closer and closer, residents have requested that new projects take into account the residential areas near where they will be built, and get that these areas get the some of same protections as the Charles River. Many projects focus on the front of the development and the look from the street, but residents at the Comprehensive Plan Review meeting said their homes should also be taken into account. “Developments need to be blended into the fabric of the neighborhood,” said resident Rena Baskin. She suggested having rules about where green space should go so that developers know what to expect. “They should have green space, not in the middle of the building but near the neighborhood or on the river,” Baskin said.

Development

LETTER: Welcoming SMART Development in Watertown

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First off, I would like to say that no one I have spoken to about a moratorium is anti-development. I do not feel that this is a black and white issue; on the contrary, I feel this is an exciting opportunity for the town—if done well. Whether it’s a moratorium, or hiring a dedicated consultant to help us get the Comprehensive Plan in place, we need to do something fast before it’s too late. Let’s face it: developers need a strong incentive to do the best for the town. Unless we have a good vision, codified into our laws, we negotiate with all developers from a position of weakness and rely on their mercy for our requests.