Sullivan Square could be in for even more of a positive change as Charlestown developer Gray MacLetchie reported this week that he is in the very early stages of developing a 22-unit condominium building on the Square behind the old Tweed School.
“I’m in the very beginning stages of going through the permitting process,” he said last week. “What I’m proposing is to sub-divide the property and knock down the small building behind the old school and build a new 22-unit condo building in place of that.”
He said the old school – which is commercial building with tenants such as Turnstyle Cycling Studio – would remain as is and he would be focusing on a smaller, existing building behind it that has four units now. The new building would have 22 spaces in parking under the new building.
The first neighborhood meeting is coming up this month, and he plans to visit the Charlestown Neighborhood Council (CNC) in June.
The proposed project, while in the early stages, fits in between The Graphic that is now under construction on the same area bounded by Rutherford, Spice and Cambridge Streets – all right next to the T Station and in what was once forgotten territory.
“I think it’s kind of an exciting area to be in,” he said, noting that the office for his company is next door on Spice Street. “There is a lot going on there. Up until recently, when the Graphic started, there weren’t a lot of people down here. It’s really been a commercial industrial landscape. Now with everything going on with Hood, Cambridge College, and others there is a lot more people in the area. It’s exciting to see it go from a forgotten industrial landscape…to a place that’s really coming around.”
He said the architecture and details of the project are very fluid now and will depend upon input from the community meetings that will take place soon. He said they do picture something that is modern, but also carries the industrial warehouse look with large windows.
“It will likely be a blended building, having a bit of the warehouse characteristic, but also trying to have a modern or edgy look,” he said.
MacLetchie said he has owned the property about five years and looks forward to working with the community to re-imagine the property. The only direct abutter to the project would likely be The Graphic.