Brighton Ptrsp. granted designation to build 60 new units of housing

According to the department of neighborhood development director Evelyn Friedman, the city has granted tentative designation to the Brighton Partnership for Community Reinvestment LLC, a joint venture of Diamond Sinacori, LLC and Hart Development Associates, to develop the city-owned site at 1501 Commonwealth Ave. into 60 new mixed-income home ownership units. Staff from the department of neighborhood development (DND) made the formal recommendation to the city's public facilities commission at the July 24th meeting. "This is an experienced team that promises to deliver a strong housing development that is good for the neighborhood and good for Boston," mayor Menino said. "A new mix of housing units at this site means a more vibrant Brighton community." Brighton Partnership's proposal includes plans for the new construction of four stories of housing and two underground stories of parking, creating a total of 57 new, 1, 2 and 3 bedroom units, 19 of which will be affordable. The completed 60,000 s/f project will also be built to a LEED Silver certifiable standard, in observance of DND's new green sustainable development requirements. Once home to the Provident Skilled Nursing Center, the more than 31,000 s/f property was acquired by the city by deed in lieu of foreclosure in August 2005. After holding a series of public meetings to determine the best use for the site,  DND originally issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) in spring of 2007 that called for the development of housing but received unsatisfactory proposals and decided to revise and reissue the RFP. In February of 2008, DND received four proposals and began its review process of them. Community meetings were held in March and again in May, at which neighborhood residents and Allston-Brighton community members gave feedback on each proposed project.   The vote to grant tentative designation triggers a 12-month long period during which the developer will continue to work with DND to finalize design and financial aspects of their plan, undergo the Boston Redevelopment Authority's (BRA) Article 80 Design Review, and finalize the project's funding sources.  Within this 12-month period, the Public Facilities Commission will vote to convey the property to the developer, at which point DND will move to close the sale of the property, and the developer will begin construction.