State officials are trouble-shooting delayed development plans on the Lynn waterfront, including a 350-unit multifamily complex at the former Beacon Chevrolet dealership.
The city of Lynn offers a rare-as-steak-tartare development opportunity in the current real estate market: a chance to build high-rise housing on the waterfront less than 10 miles from Boston.
The city unfurled a red carpet in 2008 when officials approved a new master plan that allows buildings up to 20 stories in mixed-use complexes on a 305-acre stretch of desolate coastal parcels.
With mechanical cranes nowhere to be seen on Lynn Harbor and the real estate cycle entering a mature phase, Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration has singled out this Gateway City of 90,000 for extra attention. A task force of top administration officials has been meeting with local and federal representatives to kick-start the city’s efforts to build market-rate housing, encourage commercial development and add public transit connections to Boston.
A major focus is a group of vacant waterfront parcels where developers hope to build large-scale projects in the next few years. A 2007 master plan laid out a vision for a vibrant seaside district containing up to 5.8 million square feet of housing, shops, offices and a hotel.
Jay Ash, the state’s economic development secretary, acknowledged the lingering delays even as he heaped praise on the city’s potential.
“There isn’t another city that isn’t named Boston or Cambridge with so much development activity ready to pop,” Ash said. “We reviewed a long list of exciting projects that really will be transformative to Lynn.”
Removing The Roadblocks
The waterfront’s industrial remnants present roadblocks, some of which have been removed in recent years. In 2010, a publicly funded $6.6 million project relocated a mile-long stretch of utility stanchions and high-voltage lines from the shoreline to the inland side of the Lynnway.
But multi-jurisdictional issues remain obstacles to development, providing the impetus for monthly meetings of the Lynn Economic Advancement and Development (LEAD) team.
“It’s one of the reasons we put together the task force,” said state Rep. Brendan Crighton, D-Lynn. “In the past, we may not have been on the same page or worried about who would get the credit.”
Boston Culinary Group founder Joseph O’Donnell has owned 17 acres at the western end of the Lynn waterfront for decades, and wants to build a $80 million multifamily development, said James Cowdell, executive director of Lynn’s Economic Development & Industrial Corp.
Wetlands continue to cloud prospects for the site, and the task force is working with federal authorities on various permitting issues that need to be resolved before it can developed, Ash said.
“What happens with each of these properties is you find out something that encumbers or inhibits that development. So we’re working on troubleshooting with the property owners,” he said.
Swampscott developer Charles Patsios also has a big stake in the neighborhood after acquiring the 65-acre former GE Gear Works property in 2013. Patsios wants to build 1,260 multifamily units on the property, a density allowed by right under the new zoning. Elkus Manfredi Architects is designing the complex, which would include at least one high-profile residential tower, Patsios said.
Patsios estimated the project costs at $400 million to $500 million and said he’s talking to various equity investors. Groundbreaking is 10 to 16 months away, he said.
“The selection I’m trying to make right now is a rather unusual one,” Patsios said. “I’ve always wanted to find someone that’s not interested in just a good business opportunity, but wants to invest in the city of Lynn. These people are coming forward.”
Connecting the parcel, located on the west side of the Lynnway, to the shoreline is a priority. Patsios said he is seeking to negotiate an easement with National Grid enabling construction of a boardwalk traveling under an arch of the General Edwards Bridge on the Lynnway to the O’Donnell parcel and the waterfront.
At the north end of the waterfront zone, former West Lynn Creamery owner Arthur Pappathanasi is in the final stage of local permitting for a 350-unit multifamily complex at the former Beacon Chevrolet dealership site. Pappathanasi, who could not be reached for comment, hopes to break ground in early 2017 on the $80 million project, Cowdell said.
An easement owned by the state Department of Conservation and Recreation has been a lingering sticking point. In exchange for permission to build on the property, Pappathanasi has been asked to provide a public benefit on a parcel that he owns downtown next to the Lynn Museum. But other options are on the table, Ash said.
“The land swap may or may not make sense. We’re trying to get all the parties together to advance the project and get the benefits that were envisioned,” he said.
And National Grid still owns the largest waterfront parcel, a 150-acre former landfill in the heart of the district that requires an environmental clean-up.
“Our job is to work with them to spur that project,” Cowdell said.
Ferry Service Founders
A pilot commuter ferry program launched in 2014 from a terminal next to the Beacon Chevrolet parcel, providing 30-minute shuttles to downtown Boston. But prospects for a permanent service are dimming amid the state’s public transit fiscal crisis.
The state’s Seaport Economic Council provided a $1.3 million subsidy for the first two seasons.
Lynn is seeking $750,000 to restore the ferry service, and its application will be reviewed by the SEC at its June meeting, Cowdell said.
An application for a Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation was recently rejected. The vessel leased from Boston Harbor Cruises did not meet the program’s guidelines, Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said.
“That was a setback and a disappointment that only just occurred, so that means we have to see if there are any other available sources,” Pollack said.
The city has applied for a federal grant to buy its own vessel, reducing the operating subsidies. Expansion from seasonal to year-round service likely would require a private sector partnership, Pollack said.
“We’re looking at a shortened season at best, but I get calls on it every day,” said Crighton, the state representative. “‘When’s the ferry starting up?’ It’s frustrating that we’re dealing with it this late in the game.”
