Peary Court demolition plans cancelled

BY PRU SOWERS

KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER

Unable to win the Historic Architecture Review Commission (HARC) approval after four attempts, developers proposing a major reformation of the existing Peary Court housing complex have backed away from plans to demolish the 160 homes on the property, replacing them with luxury houses.

 

HARC members’ continued skepticism over the proposed plan, which included razing the entire 24-acre property and erecting 160 luxury homes and 48 affordable housing units, was the primary reason White Street Partners has given up its initial plan, according to Kevin Bond, senior planner in the city planning department. But there had also been vigorous protests against the project from several residents in the next-door Meadows neighborhood.

 

Bond said discussions between White Street Partners, the group that purchased the property in 2013 for $35 million, and city planners indicate that the developer will make exterior improvements to the existing 160 buildings currently on the property. In addition, the previously-proposed 48 units of new affordable housing will be built, if city officials approve the plans, Bond said.

 

“Other than the [48] affordable units, they [White Street Partners] say the plan is to have Peary Court remain as it. They’re saying that the demolition is not going to happen now,” Bond said.

 

There are currently 48 deed-restricted rental apartments on the Peary Court property. The new proposal is to transfer those deed restrictions to 48 newly-constructed units, Bond said, and turn the former affordable units into market rate homes. Bond said he didn’t know whether developers will keep the current homes as rental units or convert them into homeownership units.

 

City planners are working with White Street Partners to draw up a development agreement that would allow the new plan to move ahead. After a development agreement is finalized, the project will still have to go through several rounds in the city approval process, including appearances in front of the planning board, the tree commission, the city commission and HARC.

 

White Street Partners will have to apply for major development plan approval. But so far they are holding most of their cards close to their chest, Bond said.

“The attached site plan was rough,” he said about the new document submitted by White Street Partners with the proposed development plan. “There was not much information there to be judged.”

 

Peary Court was formerly owned by the U.S. Navy and used for housing sailors, officers and their families. White Street Partners first went before HARC in February 2013 but withdrew its original plans when it became clear commissioners were deeply concerned over the design. Architect Bernard Zyscovich was then hired by the developer to completely redesign the proposed complex.

 

Residents of the next-door Meadows neighborhood, particularly residents on Angela Street, were vigorously vocal in their objections to several aspects of the initial design plans, which included taking down the fence and allowing Peary Court residents to access their homes via Angela Street, potentially contributing to traffic and parking congestion on the street.

Despite a complete overhaul of the original design and efforts by White Street Partners to incorporate suggestions made by the Meadow’s residents, HARC commissioners continued to vote to postpone any action on the development plan. As it became clear a consensus would be difficult if not impossible to achieve, the developers backed away from a total razing of the property. What they will propose going forward remains to be seen.

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