Developer Frank Simoni to Build 150-Unit Low-Income Housing Project-August 26, 1977

After a five-year battle with Norwood town boards, local residents, and court challenges, Canton developer Frank R. Simoni announced yesterday that he is finally ready to move forward with a 150-unit low- and moderate-income housing development on his 10-acre property at the corner of Walpole and Wilson streets. Simoni stated that he has committed to selling the project to an unnamed development firm, noting that governmental funding is now “pretty darn near assured.”

Simoni originally acquired a comprehensive permit for the housing complex in 1974 from the state Department of Community Affairs housing appeals committee after the town rejected his initial applications, which were filed under the state’s anti-snob zoning law (Chapter 774). Prior to pursuing subsidized housing, Simoni had unsuccessfully sought town meeting approval to rezone the land for condominiums, a shopping center, high-rise apartments, and a nursing home. Even after winning his state permit, town officials and a group of abutters from the Rustic Acres subdivision—built by Simoni 15 years prior—attempted to block the project in superior court, fearing high-density impacts akin to “moving Columbia Point to the suburbs,” in the words of one observer.

Simoni remarked that he pursued the low- and moderate-income housing route because local abutters “wouldn’t allow me to do anything else” and local church groups supported the need. He noted that profits on such housing are legally limited to six percent, and tenants are government-subsidized. Furthermore, Simoni mentioned that the Walpole and Wilson Street site had previously been considered for a local YMCA, but the housing development has officially scuttled those plans, though he is attempting to assemble neighboring parcels elsewhere in town to foster a future YMCA.

State Officials Promise Priority for Route 1 Median Strip

Following groundbreaking ceremonies at the Norwood Central station for a $13.6 million commuter rail improvement project—attended by MBTA board member Forrest I. Neal Jr., Selectmen Chairman George S. Usevich, and visiting state leaders—Norwood officials pressed state authorities regarding urgent traffic safety concerns following two fatal accidents along the undivided section of Route 1.

Lieutenant Governor Thomas P. O’Neill III and State Secretary of Transportation Fred Salvucci assured selectmen that extending the Route 1 median strip from Dean Street to the Walpole line will become a priority project. Salvucci estimated that full construction of the median will take four years (two years for environmental review and two years for building), while interim safety measures will be enacted immediately. Lt. Gov. O’Neill agreed to ask Public Safety Secretary Charles Barry to increase state police patrols on that stretch of highway, while the state also reviews speed limits and the potential elimination of dangerous left-hand turns. (Reporting by Tom Nutile, The Patriot Ledger).

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger