Marian Manor. Photo courtesy of EVO Real Estate Group
As a restaurateur and real estate developer, Joey Arcari has responded to the changing demographics in South Boston in recent decades by adding new dining and housing options to the neighborhood.
His next venture could transform a local landmark, the former Marian Manor nursing home, into apartments, resolving nearly a decade of speculation about the future of the 2-acre campus on Telegraph Hill. Arcari’s Monarc Development closed on the $16 million acquisition of the property this month, and is preparing to submit redevelopment plans to city officials in a few weeks.
The campus contains six buildings, ranging from 16 to 60 living spaces, suitable for conversion into apartments. The adaptive reuse projects is a departure for Arcari, who has focused primarily on new construction of apartments and condominiums in Boston and Quincy.
“It’s really a hodgepodge of buildings and units, and it’s good in one sense, in that it’ll be unique,” Arcari said.
The nursing home closed in 2024, but a legal dispute between the The Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm, owners of the property, and another potential buyer delayed the development.
Boston-based Triad Alpha Partners sued the religious order in state Land Court, seeking to enforce the terms of a purchase-and-sale agreement. After a trial in February 2025, Judge Michael D. Vhay dismissed the lawsuit.
Arcari founded the Broadway Hospitality Group, parent of the Tavern in the Square restaurants and South Boston gathering spots such as The Playwright, before selling the company last year to Garnett Station Partners. He founded Monarc Development – named after his mother, Monica Arcari – six years ago as a vertically integrated real estate company providing development, construction and property management. The company has an expanding portfolio ranging from condominiums on East Broadway to an apartment complex in Quincy Center, with approximately 75 housing units under construction.
Arcari was aware of the potential redevelopment opportunity, which had been explored by the religious order before COVID, and was enthusiastic when John Maggio of Everett-based Evo Real Estate Group contacted him this winter as the new broker for the religious order. His offer was accepted, and Arcari closed on the acquisition March 13 with $14.5 million in mortgage financing from Northern Bank & Trust.
“I thought the project was sold, so I have to give a lot of credit to John. He revived the deal and brought it over the finish line,” Arcari said.
The campus at the corner of Dorchester Street and Old Harbor contains over 200,000 square feet of living space in buildings completed between 1910 and 1973, including a former Carney Hospital building and smaller assisted living buildings. Arcari has hired Brookline-based Sousa Design Architects to develop a reuse plan.
Although no new residential buildings are planned, Arcari said the project may require construction of parking, and approval of variances. He estimated the redevelopment would total 150 to 180 apartments, and has begun preliminary discussions with city officials prior to submitting the formal development plan and meeting with neighborhood groups.
“It really doesn’t start until we’ve got something to show them as a starting point,” he said.
