On October 16, the Newton Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) voted unanimously to grant our team a Comprehensive Permit to build 295 apartments at 78 Crafts St. in the Newtonville neighborhood. This does not guarantee our project, but it is an incredibly meaningful step forward and reason for us to formally announce our intentions for the site.
Our 295-unit project includes much-needed 59 units of subsidized housing for household earning up to 50% of the Area Median Income (“AMI”), as well as approximately 40,000 sf of outdoor open space, a brand-new tot lot, dog park, dedicated coworking space, fitness center, and parking. We aim to transform the underutilized industrial site into more attractive and much needed housing. The project is within walking distance of Newtonville shops, the MBTA Commuter rail, Whole Foods, and more. It’s also designed and built to Passive House standards, the highest standard for energy efficiency, and will transform the site from an industrial, mostly impervious one, to residential with plentiful green space and improved stormwater management.
This project is unique because we are chasing a much deeper level of affordability during our region’s housing crisis, when such affordability is very needed and very hard to come by for our neighbors and community members. It represents a meaningful opportunity to provide housing in the incredibly desirable city of Newton for families, for those that want to age in their community, and local business employees.
We are grateful that this project is advancing because of our belief in the need for housing creation in our region and we are committed to working with the City and our neighbors. Developments are always made better by the voices in the neighborhood, local government, and experts in architecture, sustainability, traffic, and so on. We will continue to listen throughout this process and as we continue to the next phase of development.