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Down go former St. Patrick’s buildings in Natick

April 19, 2023 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

The St. Patrick’s School demolition got dramatic this week, with the convent building starting to go down, making way for what will be a mixed use development from Stonegate Group. The school building demolition is slated to begin at the start of May, with some items from the buildings salvaged for possible later use in the new project.

St Patricks School demolition

 

What’s more Stonegate made a request to the Select Board on Wednesday, April 19 to amend its development agreement, allowing it to sell the 8 townhome units planned for the site directly to homeowners as condos in order to give the firm some financial relief in light of skyrocketing construction costs and interest rates. The Board approved the amendment, with some follow-up and lawyer business to come.

The plan is for the site to contain those 8 townhouse units (2 units of which will formally be “affordable”) as well as a 4-story mixed retail and rental unit complex facing Rte. 135. Overall, there will be 54 units, with 48 of them counting towards Natick’s Subsidized Housing Inventory. “Our schedule to complete the entire project is approximately 22-24 months from completion of the ongoing demolition work.  Work on the mixed-use building and townhomes will run simultaneously,” Stonegate’s Dean Calivas told us via email.

We’ve embedded Stonegate’s letter to the Board below.

Stonegate site plan for St Patricks

 

Thanks to Natick resident Alan Taylor for sharing video and photos from the demolition. We took care of the “before” pics last week…

St Patricks School demolition

 

St Patricks School demolition

 


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Filed Under: Real estate

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Natick business buzz: The Flats coming back to life; New package store makes bid; David’s Bridal warns of layoffs

April 15, 2023 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

The latest Natick, Mass., business news:

The Flats coming back to life

Work on The Flats housing complex, at 7 Washington St. next to Agostino’s, had been all out for a while, but in recent months has stalled. The plan is to build studios and 1- and 2-bedroom apartments.

We reached out to The Flats via its website and asked what was up, as Natick Report readers have been asking us. We didn’t get a lot of details, but were told:

“The project hit several delays and was sold for $9.5M.  Construction will restart in the coming weeks.”

Sounds promising…

The previous building was torn down in early 2022. Past tenants included Bruno’s barber shop (now on Pond Street), Kentucky Spirits, and others.

The project is on its way to becoming a new structure with retail on the ground floor and 4 levels of apartments above, with off-street parking. The Planning Board in March of 2020 gave its blessing to the project, including a site plan and special permit, at the Natick Mercantile Building. A 7-19 Washington Working Group had studied the project for Natick.

The Flats

New package store makes bid

The Natick Select Board is slated to host a public hearing on April 19 at 6:30pm at Town Hall regarding an application for an all-alcohol package store license in the plaza at 2 Mill St. that currently includes Liberty Pizza, a convenience store, and salon.

The application is for Liberty Liquors (Jaymin Patel, manager).  A memo from Natick Police Deputy Chief Brian Lauzon says the applicant is a suitable recipient for a license, but questions the location in light of another package store nearby (Roche Bros. plaza).

David’s Bridal warns of possible mass layoffs

David’s Bridal, which has a location at Natick’s Sherwood Plaza, is exploring a sale of the company and possibly more than 9,000 layoffs. The company, which sells wedding gowns and accessors, emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2019.

The Natick location is listed on the Pennsylvania company’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (the “WARN Act”) notice, embedded below. The company would take a phased approach to layoffs, with those at stores coming between mid-June and mid-August.

“The timetable for closing is based on the best information available, although it is subject to change as the Company continues to evaluate its options. The layoffs are expected to be permanent, although new opportunities may become available depending on the outcome of the Company’s sale efforts,” the company wrote.

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Filed Under: Business, Construction, Real estate



Natick residential real estate sales: February, 2023

March 22, 2023 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

A listing of Natick residential real estate sales (for more than $100*) recorded during February at the Middlesex South Registry of Deeds:

  • 11 River St. Unit 1                       $1,399,990
  • 4 Judith Rd.                                 $1,050,000
  • 25 Crest Rd.                                 $975,000
  • 71 1/2 Pond St.                            $950,000
  • 10 Washington Ave. Unit B      $915,000
  • 27 Marion St.                               $862,500
  • 86 Kendall Lane #86                 $850,000
  • 31 Pond St. Unit E                      $831,000
  • 3 D St.                                           $675,000
  • 13 Rutledge Rd.                           $655,000
  • 27 Connecticut Ave.                   $465,000
  • 127 Hartford St.                          $415,000
  • 3 Silver Hill Lane Unit 2.          $355,000
  • 34 Walden Dr. Unit 34WD5    $335,000
  • 12 Graystone Lane, #12            $312,700
  • 48 Silver Hill Lane #21             $293,000
  • 10 Village Way Unit 14             $248,000
  • 346 North Main St.                  $100,000

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


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Filed Under: Real estate

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5 Auburn St. is back on Natick Select Board agenda

March 21, 2023 by Bob Brown 1 Comment

Update (3/22/23): Revisiting the 5 Auburn St. request for proposals and vote turned out to be a brief affair, as you can see on the Pegasus recording at about the 1-hour, 11-minute mark. Board member Rich Sidney requested the agenda item and began by confirming with town counsel that the board is allowed to condition the negotiation of the development agreement as part of the award motion. He should have been allowed at the March 15 meeting where the 5 Auburn St. vote took place to propose an amendment to the award motion. As it turns out, he decided not to propose such an amendment out of concern that doing so could derail negotiations with the chosen outfit for this project, but by bringing up the issue he clarifies it and sets a precedent for future meetings.

Related, Chair Paul Joseph noted that the board received an influx of more messages on the topic of 5 Auburn St., and took exception to such messages and social media posts claiming “suspicious activities and backroom deals.”


We did a double-take when alerted to the fact that the subject of 5 Auburn St., had been added to this Wednesday’s Natick Select Board agenda.

Last week, the Board voted 3-2 in favor of a plan by a non-profit developer to build 32 units of “deeply affordable rental housing for families” on a dead-end road in South Natick that abuts the Charles River. The former school property at 5 Auburn St., is owned by the town.

Next up for the board was to be entering into a development agreement with the Metro West Collaborative.

However, a request has come to the chair of the board to reconsider the request for proposals and vote. So, the board on Wednesday night will discuss a possible vote on that request, and if it gets a positive vote, more dialogue and debate would ensue.

5 Auburn St., former Eliot School, Natick


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Filed Under: Government, Real estate

One high school student’s push to save Natick ballroom hidden in plain sight

March 21, 2023 by Admin 9 Comments

By Ella Stern, editor-in-chief, The Natick Nest


A 19th-century ballroom, gorgeous but decaying, rich with history, hidden in plain sight, and mortally threatened. It sounds like something out of a mystery novel or Victorian literature, but it is right here in Natick.

The ballroom, known as Concert Hall, is located on the third floor of Clark’s Block in Natick Center, above Lola’s and Baylee Bee. It has passed through many hands and been the site of many stories throughout the centuries, but now its tale may come to a close. Concert Hall’s current owners are threatening to demolish it, but Caroline Niedermeyer, Natick High School ’23, is determined to save the concert hall, its beauty, and its historical significance. 

Concert Hall

Concert Hall opened in 1875. It is located in Clark’s Block, a building in Natick Center that was built in 1872 and rebuilt in 1874 (after Natick’s Great Fire) by Nathaniel Clark. Clark wanted to give the people of Natick a place to gather for concerts, dances, meetings, and lectures. In addition to being a former social destination, the ballroom also has historical significance: Former Vice President Henry Wilson’s wake was held there in 1875. 

But Concert Hall is no longer in its golden age. It was last used in the 1930s, and has been abandoned for the 90 years since. “It’s pretty sad inside, but if it’s restored, it could be so beautiful,” Niedermeyer said. The ballroom could also give back to Natick if it is saved. A video made in support of Concert Hall suggests that it could host ballroom dancing, chamber groups, musicals and plays, art shows, TED talks, graduation ceremonies, weddings, and more. The video also points out that the ballroom would draw more people to spend time in Natick, which would help local shops and restaurants.   

However, the current owners want to demolish the gorgeous, historic ballroom and demote it to office space. They refuse to talk to Friends of Concert Hall, an organization trying to save the ballroom, or to Niedermeyer, a Natick High School senior whose National Honor Society lead project is raising awareness about saving Concert Hall. 

Niedermeyer got interested in Natick’s history during quarantine, when she began walking around town, noticing interesting buildings, and researching their history. When she came across Clark’s Block, she was initially intrigued by its beauty and by the markings of past businesses on its exterior. She didn’t yet know about the ballroom within.      

clark's block

       

Niedermeyer’s motivation to save the ballroom stems in part from the hurt she, as an intern for the Natick Historical Society, feels at the knowledge that the ballroom’s current owners want to demolish it and the historical significance it carries for the town. “We’re tearing down all these old buildings when we could be restoring them and keeping Natick’s legacy. I think [Concert Hall] will bring a lot more life into the town, a lot more community,” she said. Niedermeyer is also inspired by Nathaniel Clark’s care for the ballroom. When he rebuilt Clark’s Block after the 1874 fire, he installed fireproof doors around Concert Hall to protect it. To Niedermeyer, this action exemplifies how important Concert Hall was to Clark. She wants to respect that memory by leading a project to save Concert Hall.       

The first phase of Niedermeyer’s project is publicity. The concert hall’s third-floor location and locked doors make it so that the average Natick resident is unaware of its existence. As a result, it is difficult to fundraise, let alone to further mobilize people. Working alone, Niedermeyer has begun making posters and a website to raise awareness about Concert Hall. She hopes to assemble a group of students to help spread the word by putting up posters, editing the website, answering questions from the press, and, most importantly, talking to the people of Natick about saving Concert Hall. 

After publicity, funding presents a major hurdle: it would cost around one million dollars to restore the ballroom. 20% of that price would come from the state government and another 20% would come from the town of Natick, but that still leaves about $600,000. Niedermeyer hopes that increased awareness of Concert Hall and its fate will help raise that money. Her lead project focuses on assembling a group to raise awareness, and she hopes that that group will take charge of fundraising (with her help) once she graduates.  

Niedermeyer encourages Natick High School students to get involved in her project. She is looking for a group of 10–15 people, but would welcome anyone who wants to help. If you are interested, send her an email at caniedermeyer@students.natickps.org. 

Just like Concert Hall itself, a band of students fighting against the powers that be to save a town landmark sounds like something out of a story, something that could never work in real life. However, Niedermeyer believes that Natick can pull it off. She says that Concert Hall presents “an opportunity for Natick to become unified and use this abandoned space for something beautiful, and it’s all in the power of the town…[I]f everyone is on the same page and comes together, I think we could save this concert hall.”

Concert Hall

 


Natick Report has begun working with The Natick Nest, Natick High School’s official student-run school newspaper, to help bring the students’ work to a larger audience. We’ll be republishing some of their articles, and plan to coordinate with their staff on additional pieces.


Interested in sponsoring stipends for Natick Report interns? Let us know: natickreport@gmail.com

Filed Under: History, Real estate

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