BOSTON, MA - Developers of Overlook Ridge, a project that sits astride two communities at the old Rowe Quarry site, want a zoning change that would allow them to build more rental residential properties in Revere.
But some city officials said they are leery of approving the request until they receive assurances that the development will also include the commercial and retail components that were promised several years ago.
Malden officials have already approved an expansion plan from Roseland Property Co. and Lennar Urban Northeast, which are still seeking approval for a zoning overlay district from the Revere City Council, said Justine Griffin, spokeswoman for the developers.
Already, Revere's side of the project has 650 occupied rental units. Developers have previously stated that when the project is completed, it will have 2,800 residential units, as well as a hotel and retail and commercial facilities.
An overlay district would allow Roseland and Lennar to build new high-rises, with about 300 to 400 additional rental units, on a portion of the site that is zoned for single-family home construction only, said City Council president Daniel Rizzo. The Revere City Council recently forwarded the matter for further discussion to its zoning subcommittee, which is scheduled to meet March 9.
"The problem that I have with it, and other councilors have with it, is that when they first came to the city of Revere, the city was led to believe that this was a mixed-use project," Rizzo said. "The only thing we have is apartments, and that's all they're proposing."
Part of Rizzo's reservations about the project, he said, is that the developers have gone to appellate tax court to contest the city's assessment that the apartments fall under the luxury category, which allows the city to charge more property taxes. Rizzo is also critical about the snail's-pace progress of the planned widening of Route 1, which the developers also promised. Although acknowledging it had more to do with the economy, Rizzo stated he is still concerned that the developers could not sell many of the condominium units on the Malden side and had to resort to renting some of them.
"We've bent over backwards for them since they brought this project to the city," Rizzo said. "I don't know what the benefit for the city will be" to add new rental units.
Mayor Thomas G. Ambrosino, who said he favors the overlay district, said there is no reason to doubt the developers' promises to include a mixed-use component in the project.
"They proposed building two apartment buildings in Revere and a fire station. They met those deadlines," Ambrosino said. "They've kept their word thus far."
Allowing additional density on the site might "enhance the possibility of the city to get some commercial property," Ambrosino said. While he said he would prefer the property tax benefits of condominiums, Ambrosino added that building more rentals is the "better way to go."
The area Roseland and Lennar want to build on is currently a series of cliffs, bordering Malden and Saugus, that would have to be blasted to make room for construction, Ambrosino said. If the council approves the overlay district, the project will take a while longer to be completed. The same goes with the promised Route 1 expansion, which is being led by the Massachusetts Highway Department and is still in the design phase, he said.
While rentals may be more market-friendly at the moment, they also tend to attract families with school-age children, said Councilor Robert J. Haas Jr., who was mayor when Roseland developers first proposed building condos on the Revere side around 2001. Schools Superintendent Paul Dakin issued a letter to the council stressing that schools are overcrowded, and that the current Overlook Ridge apartments have added 30 to 40 students to the district, Haas said. With more families moving out of their homes, Haas said it is possible that the apartments may appeal to them.
"I thought [the overlay] could possibly be good for the city, but students are a new issue without question," Haas said. "We're not sure what they want to build. . . . I don't think 35 is a lot of students, but again, with the economic changes, you never know what people will move in."
Source: Boston.com