Planning Board Endorses Office Condominium Conversion For Closed School
A municipal proposal to rezone the historic, vacant Winslow School property has advanced toward the upcoming special town meeting with unanimous backing from key municipal leaders and broad neighborhood consent. The Norwood Planning Board voted 4-0, with one member absent, during their latest session to formally endorse rezoning the 1.5-acre parcel from a General Residence two-family designation to an Office-Research district. The decision clears the path for selectmen to seek town meeting approval for the formal sale of the school building, situated at the corner of Chapel Street and Winslow Avenue, for conversion into professional office condominiums.
The proposed real estate transaction preserves community recreational space, as approximately 2.6 acres of adjacent town-owned playground land will be completely excluded from the sale. Selectmen currently hold a high bid of $325,250 submitted by attorney James T. Hilliard on behalf of four private clients. Although official public hearing notices were delivered to 25 direct neighborhood abutters of the Winslow School, no residents appeared at the forum to voice opposition to the commercial reuse. The planning board noted that an Office-Research designation provides substantial buffer protections to the surrounding residential neighborhood because it remains a highly restrictive land-use category. Furthermore, an independent study committee that included several neighborhood residents formally reviewed and endorsed the office layout.
Planning Board Chairman E. William Bamber addressed potential legal questions regarding the transition, noting that the plan does not constitute improper spot zoning. He explained that if a project integrates cleanly into an established neighborhood without causing detriment to the surrounding properties, it escapes the standard definition of spot zoning. While the private developers may still need to petition the zoning appeals board following town meeting approval, E. William Bamber indicated that the long-term historical existence of the school structure could exempt the site plan from standard Office-Research district bylaw mandates governing total lot area and property line setbacks.
Selectman Chairman John F. Kinnaly praised the Office-Research designation as the most restrictive and protective mechanism available to safeguard the residential perimeter. Selectman Walter J. Dempsey confirmed his full support for the project, clarifying that his prior lone dissenting vote against accepting the initial real estate tender was purely procedural. Walter J. Dempsey stated that he objected to accepting a $325,000 bid within two seconds of its immediate submission last month without analyzing the two competing bids. After a thorough examination of all contract conditions, Walter J. Dempsey stated he was 100 percent in favor of the project, estimating that 99 percent of the local neighborhood shared his enthusiasm. Selectman Thomas A. Riolo also spoke strongly in favor of the finalized school sale.
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