Boston, MA – The Boston Redevelopment Authority Board granted approval to the Charlesview redevelopment project in Allston-Brighton. Charlesview is a 213-unit apartment complex located at the corner of Western & North Harvard Avenues in Allston. Through a 2007 land-swap agreement with Harvard University, The Community Builders, Inc., on behalf of the Charlesview board of directors, submitted a proposal for the Charlesview redevelopment project to be located on two parcels; the 7.93-acre Brighton Mills site on Western Avenue and a .72-acre parcel on Telford Street.
“The residents of Charlesview have waited long enough for new housing,” Mayor Thomas M. Menino said. “This project will transform the underutilized Brighton Mills site into a thriving mixed-income residential community with neighborhood retail and open space.”
The Charlesview Redevelopment project proposal includes a 470,163sf mixed-use development consisting of residential, community, commercial and open space uses. The project calls for the construction of 240 rental units, 213 of which are the replacement units, with an additional 27 new rental units and 100 new homeownership units. The project also includes approximately 26,533sf of commercial/community space and the creation of four acres of new open space that includes the re-established connection between the neighborhood and the Charles River.
Specifically, the Brighton Mills site includes 25 individual buildings, including 19 townhouses, three row houses, and three mid-rise buildings. The Telford Street site includes a seven-story building consisting of the 80 homeownership units. Building heights on the Brighton Mills Site will range from 2.5 stories for the townhouses to five stories for the mid-rise buildings adjacent to Western Avenue.
In addition to The Community Builders, Inc., the development team includes CBT Architects, Rackemann Sawyer & Brewster as the legal counsel, and Howard Stein Hudson as the transportation consultant. The project will create 300 construction jobs as well as 30 permanent jobs upon completion.
