Image courtesy of Neighbor
A multifamily housing project recently approved by Somerville officials could be a harbinger of future development patterns in an emerging section of Assembly Square.
The 1,737 square-foot parcel containing a low-rise commercial building at 33 Mystic Ave. will be redeveloped as a 6-story, 11,911 square-foot residential building including eight units and ground-floor commercial space.
The project could set a precedent for future development on the cluster of small commercial parcels located at the southern tip of Assembly Square near the Charlestown line, said Paul Miller, co-founder and principal of Cambridge-based architect Neighbor.
“It sets the tone from an urban design perspective that this can be a high-quality place for creatives, which is what the city imagines in the neighborhood plan,” Miller said.
Approved by the Somerville Planning Board on April 17, the project required four special permits for zoning relief. But future developers could have an easier path to approval under the city’s proposed rezoning for Assembly Point.
The Assembly Square Neighborhood Plan is nearing completion after five years of study, and envisions shaping the future of the neighborhood following the explosive growth of the past decade. Federal Realty’s Assembly Row redevelopment and spec lab towers by Greystar and BioMed Realty filled large parcels to the north. Boston-based Cabot, Cabot & Forbes acquired the Home Depot property at 75 Mystic Ave. for a long-range redevelopment.
That leaves the Assembly Point district as the next potential development frontier. The small parcels and existing street grid lend themselves to creation of a “vibrant micro-district” including restaurants, housing, makerspaces and arts uses, the planning study concluded. Planning scenarios include rezoning for 6-story building heights, and a potential redevelopment of the entire district by a master developer.
Jamaica Plain-based developer Stella Moon acquired the 33 Mystic Ave. property in 2018 for $650,000, according to a Middlesex County deed. The project has been acquired by Boston-based www.mapudevelopment.com, which is looking for investors as it seeks financing for the project, Neighbor Architects’ Miller said.
“Our client had this notion with what was going to happen in Assembly Square, the Point might become a high-quality place for creatives, which is what the city imagines in the neighborhood plan,” Miller said.
A rendering from the city of Somerville’s Assembly Point Neighborhood Plan showing the general proposed layout of the city’s vision for the parcels. Image courtesy city of Somerville
