Westwood Station Project Draws Strong State and Local Backing

Project will turn 135 acres of industrial park into vibrant mixed-use community.

WESTWOOD - Plans to build a 4.5 million square foot mix of offices, hotels and luxury residences centered on 1.2 million square feet of retail space are drawing strong backing from both state and local officials.

Westwood Station, a combined effort by New England Development, Cabot, Cabot & Forbes of New England (CC&F), and Commonfund Realty, Inc. will turn 135 acres of struggling industrial park space into a vibrant mixed-use community adjacent to Route 128/I-95 and centered on the Route 128 MBTA/Amtrak station.

"This is an ideal location where lifestyle retail featuring restaurants, fashion retailers, home furnishings and specialty retail fills a gap in the market - that long empty stretch between the malls of Braintree and Natick," said Stephen Karp, Chairman and CEO of New England Development.

CC&F has assembled 135 acres of land at the site and has worked closely with local officials from the inception of the project.

Jay Doherty

"Community leaders in Westwood have a strong desire to see this area thrive both because of the jobs, homes and retail opportunities it brings and because it will dramatically increase the town's tax base," said Jay Doherty, President of CC&F. "We've had a wonderful reception here and intend to continue working on a daily basis with Westwood officials and residents."

The Westwood Board of Selectmen established the University Avenue Redevelopment Steering Committee to guide the town's efforts of revitalizing this under-performing property. Nancy Hyde of the Board of Selectmen, and Steve Rafsky, Chairman, Economic Development Advisory Board, co-chair this committee.

"Westwood is in a unique position to turn an underperforming business park into an exciting and vibrant destination location," said Hyde.

Rafsky added that "the concept of a Smart Growth development linking highways, mass transit, and a commercial area that will include retail, residential and office uses will bring many significant benefits to our town."

State officials have also been vocally supportive of the project, saying it fits virtually every criteria for so-called 'smart growth' development by combining work, recreation, shopping and homes in a community abutting public transportation.

"There's clearly a demand for living in places where you can leave the car behind, and more people are looking for alternatives to the suburban office campus and subdivisions," said Anthony Flint, smart growth education director at the Office for Commonwealth Development. "The state is supporting just this kind of mixed-use, transit-oriented development on redeveloped land."

Westwood Station will include up to 1,000 luxury residences, 1.75 million square feet of office space and three hotels. An innovative open-air retail center will form the heart of the community will feature an exciting line-up of stores and restaurants, several of which will be new to the Greater Boston area.

"This is a unique opportunity to create a new community combining retail, housing and office convenient to all kinds of transportation," said Steven S. Fischman, President of New England Development.