Planning Board to Prep Vote on One Howard Project

FRAMINGHAM - Members of the Framingham Planning Board will be preparing to give their final vote on the One Howard apartment building plan following their meeting on Thursday, April 17.

One Howard, LLC—a part of City Realty Group based in Boston—has been in discussions with city officials for months regarding their pitch to build a six-floor apartment building at 1 Howard Street and 38 Park Street. The plot of land in question is next to the Armenian Church of the Holy Translators and the city’s Commuter Rail station.

The plan to build this apartment complex in downtown Framingham has been significant reduced; last month, planners explained that the proposed scope of work has been brought from than 130 units down to 89, as the current blueprint would cover close to 46,000 square feet. The plan features 109 parking spots, most of which would be located within a garage on the building’s first floor.

Back in March, Framingham Planning Board member Mitchell Matorin outlined his concern that the One Howard building could “detract” from the downtown area’s scenery and vibrancy, as he feared that the building may look bad when viewing it from the south along Waverly Street.

Will Chalfant, a project manager for Khalsa Design—the architecture group working on the project—unveiled new renderings from that southern point of view during the Planning Board’s meeting on Thursday. He said that the mockups were made following the feedback that the group offered last month, adding his belief that the building will look suitable from all angles.

During their most recent meeting, Planning Board members Kristina Johnson, Joseph Norton, and Thomas Buie commended the One Howard team for the changes they’ve made throughout the process. They said that they’re generally satisfied with what has been presented to them. Still, Matorin expressed worries about the building’s size and location.

“I still think that the back of it, where it’s currently six stories, is too tall,” Matorin said on Thursday.

“It overwhelms the other things in the immediate vicinity, and I would like to see it shrunk down additionally.”

Matorin told planners that the idea size for the project in his mind would be a four-story building, but he could approve of a five-story project with an additional reduction of residential units. The One Howard team, however, believes they have reduced the scope of work as much as they possibly can; they contend that financing the project could become an issue with a plan that’s reduced even further.

Johnson, the chair of the Planning Board, believes that a project like the One Howard proposal is something that the Central Business can be used to provide to the community.

“This is kind of what the zoning—if I’m talking about legislative intent with town meeting—that this is what it was for: to develop next to a train station and make it transit oriented,” Johnson continued on Thursday.

The Planning Board eventually voted to close the public hearing on the One Howard plan. Deliberations among the group will continue and a draft decision will be drawn up prior to their meeting on Thursday, May 1. A final vote from the Planning Board will follow.