Allen Street Redevelopment Discussion Streaming on BCAM

Braintree officials are encouraging residents who missed last week's discussion of the redevelopment of the former Braintree Electric Light Department site on Allen Street to view it via BCAM and contribute feedback.

Attention to the site, where BELD once generated electricity, is long overdue, Mayor Joseph Sullivan said during a meeting at Town Hall on Sept. 18.

Though there are challenges involved, such as the tightness of Allen Street and the traffic on Quincy Avenue, Sullivan said, the upsides are high for development.

["It] is an incredibly attractive site," Sullivan said.

The property was transferred to the town in June 2011 and for the past several years town officials and architects have been examining what to do with the land.

The property has been dormant for two decades. It was once the site of grist and saw mills as well as shipbuilding and coal plants. 

Now the town is considering ways to sustainably reuse the land, including adding "a modest number of housing units." A Monatiquot Riverwalk is also part of the plans. The town received a grant from the National Park Service two years ago to help design the riverwalk.

A Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment has been completed, as well as a structural analysis of the existing buildings on the site, according to the mayor's office. 

The project is led by the Boston-based architecture and urban planning firm of
Gamble Associates, in partnership with CityVisions Associates. The initiative builds off of the community engagement effort that was undertaken by the Community Design Resource Center-Boston in 2010.  

If you missed the presentation for 44 Allen St. you can access it at either the BCAM website or the Planning and Community Development web page.