In Natick, a pair of former industrial buildings near the Natick Center T station has been reborn as stylish new apartments, with some units fetching rents up to $2,250. A new condo building around the corner in the town center sold a couple dozen units in the $400,000s after opening in the aftermath of the Great Recession – the timing was touch but the building ultimately proved a success. A bargain and then some compared to Wellesley Center a couple miles east on Route 135.
Waltham is seeing a major addition to its downtown take shape with the construction of the retro-looking Merc at Moody Main, which pays homage to the 19th century Mercantile building that once stood on the block. Along with 269 apartments, 27,000 square feet of restaurants and shops are also planned.
Other communities are watching closely and hatching their own downtown housing plans.
Marlborough officials want to rezone the city center to bring in new housing, while Framingham has been considering similar plans.
It’s not just about spanking new buildings and projects either. Many older town centers, especially in New England, have an abundance of 19th century old brick retail and mill buildings as well, with two or three stories of vacant space above the local coffee shop or restaurant.
I am probably not the first person to drive through one or another old New England downtown to gaze at these beautiful old stone and brick buildings and wonder why no sharp developer has tried to convert the upper floors into apartments or condos.
Well it’s happening now in Natick center, with a local builder putting in 11 apartments above a nail salon and record store in a beautiful old brick building dating to the 1800s at the corner of Washington and South streets.
Hey, I’d move in there if I was an empty nester. Who needs downtown Boston when you have Natick or Waltham center at your feet? Well, maybe that’s a tiny bit of a stretch, but you get the idea.
Certainly there are other ways to get your urban fix than to move to downtown Boston.