The ZBA approved the special permit for the public-private Veterans’ Home in Chelsea redevelopment project at its regular meeting last week.
The presentation before the ZBA was essentially the same that has come before the Planning Board and the ZBA previously over the past several months.
There were some minor changes to the landscaping plan, as well as clarification on the lighting plan, loading areas, and more detailed floor plans of the buildings and the individual units at last week’s meeting.
There will be 241 units throughout the redeveloped property, which is a public-private partnership between the state and developer Pennrose. Pennrose representatives stated that all 121 veterans currently living on site will be able to remain on the property during construction and will have a place in one of the newly updated units.
Veterans will have 100 percent preference for the affordable units at the redeveloped Veterans’ Home, according to Karmen Cheung, a senior developer for Pennrose.
There will be centralized social services provided onsite provided by Soldier On, a private nonprofit organization that provides veterans services at similar locations, according to Pennrose.
Pennrose is preserving all nine buildings that are on the current Soldiers’ Home site, with the only scheduled demolition set for the one-story incinerator building.
The new construction for the project includes 18 units of townhouses, a two-story cafe and community building, and a new building on the east parcel at the corner of Hillside and Crest Avenue.
At last week’s ZBA meeting, several residents raised continued concerns about the level of care that the current residents will receive at the development, as well as about traffic, parking, and a loss of green space on the property.
“You’re basically developing every square inch of the property,” said Eleanor Street resident Victor Tiernan.
Tiernan said he was also concerned that the construction of the east parcel building would destroy a green space that is used by many veterans, as well as residents in the area.
Eleanor Street resident Constantinos Boussios said he was concerned that residents who have greater needs and depend on the three meals a day currently provided will be pushed out of the new development.
Robert Engell, the interim director for the Veterans’ Home at Chelsea and the executive director for housing for the state’s Executive Office of Veterans Services said the state believes the project will be transformational for the campus and will support the needs of current residents as well as future veterans.
“This will be affordable housing where each individual veteran will have the opportunity to live independently in their own home,” said Engell. “The Commonwealth remains committed to serving veterans at Chelsea and in the entire Commonwealth. The combination of rehabilitation and new construction for this project meets the needs of our veterans today and tomorrow and it’s very forward thinking for our Massachusetts veterans.”
The project is proposed to be in phases, with the first phase being Sargent, the Laundry Building, the connector building, Williams, and the victory garden.
The priority for the first phase was to renovate the existing buildings that are mostly vacant, so that there would be fewer existing residents as possible moved.
The second phase will consist of the Adams building and the East Parcel, the third phase will be the Sullivan building and the townhouses, and the final phase will be the headquarters building, the power plant, and the Keville Building.
The overall parking plan calls for the creation of a parking deck with 119 off-street parking spots, and the creation of a parking district along Crest Avenue and Hillside which will provide 78 on-street parking spaces for Veterans’ Home residents.
On Tuesday night, the Planning Board approved the site plan for the project.