Photo above: An exterior shot of the auto body shop now occupying 80 Christopher St. – a heavily industrialized district where a Quincy developer has proposed a 108-unit building. Seth Daniel photo
A seven-story, 108-unit residential apartment building would replace what is now an auto body shop in a largely industrial zone near Fields Corner under a plan filed earlier this week by a Quincy-based LLC controlled by Colman Grealish.
The proposal is on the agenda for next Tuesday’s (March 3) Fields Corner Civic Association meeting and will be subject to a public hearing as part of the Boston Planning Department’s review process.
The 23,935 sq. ft. site in question on Christopher Street is located in a “local industrial zone” that includes the Boston Duck Tours headquarters next door, as well as other auto body businesses and the Feeney Brothers heavy equipment yard. The street doesn’t even have sidewalks at the moment. Behind the lot are a few residential homes, and one five-story, 15-unit apartment building currently under construction. The site has a driveway easement that comes off of Park Street.
What once was an older duplex home surrounded by industrial uses has been demolished this week to make way for a five-story, 15-unit building on Park Street directly behind the proposed 108-unit building on Christopher St. Seth Daniel photo
According to the “letter of intent” filing made by attorney Mike Ross, “The Proposed Project will replace a two-story commercial building presently being used for automobile repair and related uses, with a seven-story residential apartment building with 108 units of housing, including income-restricted units equal to 15 percent of the total residential unit count, and an additional 3 percent of the total residential unit count set aside for voucher holders. In this regard, the Proposed Project’s residential use makes for a reduced impact from its present one.”
Broadly speaking, the Fields Corner civic group has welcomed development, and actually asked an adjacent developer in 2023 to increase the size of a project. However, members of the group this week said they had no official opinion yet.
In his letter to the BPD this week, Attorney Ross added that the project “advances City planning and housing policy objectives by facilitating the creation of new housing units in underutilized industrial areas of the city.”
The development team also touted its proximity to the MBTA, with the Fields Corner Red Line Station about a half mile away and several bus routes on Adams Street.
