CantonMA_web

regarding the repurposing of the Paul Revere buildings contemplates dedicating the life story of Paul Revere - his family, his company, the birth of the copper industry - Paul Revere’s life and times in Canton.”“We are in the middle of completing a market feasibility analysis and business plan related to those historic buildings to make sure all the numbers work, and so far it looks very promising,” Smead adds. Plans for the private parcel include 272 units of housing, including 186 owner-occupied condominiums and 60 age-restricted rental apartments. “The initial proposal was about 500 or 600 apartments and the town absolutely could not handle that,” Comeau avers. “So, over the years, the town was able to negotiate down to this 272, with 60 units that are over-fifty-five rentals, which is really important to the com- munity because a lot of people are getting a bit older in the community and want to utilize the option at a place where their backyard is going to be this gorgeous field, the town commons, plus these two historic buildings. So, this will be a prime location for those who want to move there.” “As the Town Planner, what I like about it from a ‘best practice and sustainability’ perspective is having this relatively denser development, but it’s done in conjunction with trails and open space. It’s also within walking distance to a couple of commuter stations. So, you have this transit-oriented development which reduces some of the burden on the local roads.” “This is a perfect example of smart growth,” echoes Del Vecchio. “It’s literally next to the CANTON, MASSACHUSETTS commuter station called Canton Junction. So, people can walk to and from the train station to go into Boston or Attleboro, or wherever they want, and then come home and walk to their residence. It’s a great location. It’s also bordered by bodies of water, so it’s a pretty location.” It’s expected that housing con- struction will take several years. “The last two years, they’ve been cleaning up the site,” Del Vecchio says. “There’s a significant amount of environmental damage to the land, which is being remediated – that’s under way. It was spotted with a number of industrial build- ings – it was the ugliest thing you’d ever want to look at - and that had to all be demolished in a safe and reasonable fashion. So that’s been completed. In addition, there was a variety of permitting steps that have to be taken, including the Conservation Commission and the ZBA (Zoning Board of Appeals), and the Board of Health and the Depart- ment of Environmental Protection, so that process is taking some time, and in fact, is continuing. So, they haven’t yet broken ground in terms of actually constructing their first unit. The first housing units prob-