By Brian Denitzio
News Editor

A developer has reached an agreement to purchase the long-vacant Burger King site at 960 Morrissey Blvd and on Tuesday night presented their future plans for the site to the Planning Committee of the Pope's Hill Neighborhood Association. Representatives from the Grossman Companies, as well as their architect, presented plans that would involve constructing a 16,000-square foot commercial market place on a site bordered by Conley St., Norwood St., and Morrissey Blvd.

Grossman's preliminary plans show an L-shaped building with room for up to nine retail clients. Richard McKinnon, from Grossman's brokerage team expressed that an ideal set-up would involved four or five clients, and that sketches showed only one possibility. Some members of the committee bristled at plans that might bring two tenants with drive-thrus on the site.

"A drive-thru to us equals bad things," said Phil Carver, president of the Pope's Hill Neighborhood Association. Carver stated that if the association were to support any drive-thrus, it would likely ask that any agreement be tied to the specific tenant, and not set a precedent for future tenants.

Possible tenants that might utilize a drive-thru might be a bank or McKinnon said that he was aware of community sentiment opposing a fast-food restaurant in the site, and said that a target tenant that could seek a drive-thru might be Starbucks. He said that were an eatery to go in, a target would be something between a sit-down restaurant and fast food, citing Panera as an example.

As the discussion turned to other possible tenants, members of the committee suggested a bookstore, a florist, such as Kabloom!, a clothing store, or an Olympia Sports. Grossman's other developments include the Granite Plaza in Quincy. McKinnon said that the company plans to complete the purchase of the site within the next sixty days and move towards construction at the end of the summer with the hope of opening next spring.

Entrances to the plaza are planned in the existing curb cut on Morrissey Blvd., with a second entrance on Conley St. There would be no access from Norwood St.

Another development along Norwood St. is moving forward this week, this one at 41 Norwood St. The development will be mixed use, with an approximately 831-unit self-storage facility operated by Great Spaces. The storage facility will abut residential space that will include condominiums, with a total of nine units, as well as artist living/work space developed by Old Towne. The project is subject to an Article 80 design review by the Boston Redevelopment Authority.