Norwood Officials Weigh Proposed 150-Unit Low-Income Apartment Complex-August 7, 1978

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NORWOOD — Town officials are actively weighing the possibility of reopening legal challenges against a controversial 150-unit low- and moderate-income apartment complex slated for a nine-acre site at Walpole Street and Wilson Street. Originally proposed in 1974 by Canton developer Frank Simoni, the project stalled for years before developer Franklin Simon of Community Planning Associates of Braintree recently resubmitted plans alongside a request for roughly $5 million in mortgage insurance from the federal government. While the original 1974 proposal—approved by the state Housing Appeals Committee under the anti-snob zoning act despite fierce municipal opposition—intended to subsidize all 150 units, the updated plan scales back subsidies to cover 25 percent of the units, comprising seven buildings with 54 one-bedroom, 90 two-bedroom, and six three-bedroom apartments alongside 251 parking spaces.

According to Assistant to the Town Manager Bernard Cooper, selectmen and local abutters remain deeply opposed to the development for many of the same reasons voiced in 1974, compounded by new logistical hurdles. Key concerns include severe traffic congestion along the corridor—where the owner of the Norwood Plaza has separately requested traffic signals to manage dangerous turning movements—and the fact that the parcel sits in a neighborhood zoned exclusively for single-family dwellings.

Furthermore, Cooper noted that town-wide infrastructure constraints, specifically a municipal moratorium on new sewer hook-ups, present major hurdles. At the request of selectmen, Cooper has been directed to consult with special counsel Charles Donahue, who handled the original 1974 litigation, to evaluate the feasibility of reopening the town’s appeal. Although the state permit carries no formal expiration date and “appears the order remains in force,”

Cooper observed that the Housing Appeals Board typically prefers local settlements over reopening historical decisions. If the project ultimately moves forward, planners noted that mandatory visual screening would be required between the complex and abutting homes on Countryside Lane.

In separate community news, the Norfolk Council for Children—a regional branch of the state Office for Children monitoring services across Canton, Dedham, Foxboro, Norwood, Sharon, Walpole, and Westwood—issued an urgent call for volunteers to help tackle pressing youth issues such as child abuse, teenage pregnancy, and alcohol abuse. Interested residents were encouraged to contact Patty Higgins to get involved.

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