Norwood Housing Authority Still Pursues 10-Acre Parcel Off West Border Road For Elderly Housing-November 7, 1973

Authority Seeks State Funding Approval for 120 to 150 Units as New Landowners Proceed With Site Work

The housing authority is still seeking a 10-acre parcel off West Border Road for construction of 120 to 150 units of housing for the elderly, its executive director Lawrence J. O’Brien said yesterday. The desired parcel lies to the rear of the Nahatan Village housing for the elderly complex.

The land has been sold by Dr. William F. Lovell to developers Vincent O. Watson and John Bolger, who are seeking a zoning change to build 100 condominium units on the site. Over the objections of the housing authority, the planning board last June approved Dr. Lovell’s plan to build a subdivision of 24 duplex homes on the land. The new owners have stated they plan to proceed with the duplex plans if a future town meeting does not grant them a change from general residence to multifamily zoning. At a planning board hearing last April, housing authority members charged that Dr. Lovell had proposed his subdivision plans only to raise the price of the parcel.

Last spring, town meeting gave the authority the green light to pursue funding for 150 additional units of housing for the elderly. Yesterday, Mr. O’Brien said the funds had not yet been appropriated to purchase the land, explaining a bond issue of $125 million is now pending before the legislature. He said he expects a letter from the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) indicating conditional funding approval in time for the public hearing Monday. “If the bond issue is appropriated, then we will get the allocation,” he said.

Two appraisals conducted on behalf of the housing authority on the former Lovell parcel have valued it at $125,000 and $150,000, the director said. The planning board will hold a public hearing on the rezoning proposal Monday night and, according to Mr. O’Brien, the housing authority will attend. Informed that the new owners are proceeding with sewer installation at the site, Mr. O’Brien said, “They are doing it at their own risk. They know of our plans.”

On Monday, the housing authority met with the state Department of Community Affairs to discuss the proposal. A DCA spokesman said the meeting “went harmoniously,” but added the price of the land “was not resolved.” If the state does take the land, Mr. O’Brien said site work performed by the new owners would be taken into consideration when a final price is determined.

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