Westwood Station wins key approval

by Chris Reidy, Boston Globe Business Team
November 21, 2007

The Westwood Planning Board voted unanimously last night to approve the master plan special permit for Westwood Station, a $1.5 billion mixed-use project, the project's development team said.

The project's developers envision a 4.5-million square-foot development of Class A office buildings, retail shops and restaurants, luxury condominiums, two hotels, and landscaped public parks adjacent to the Route 128 Amtrak/MBTA commuter rail station in Westwood.

The local approval concludes three years of planning and permitting by developer Cabot, Cabot & Forbes and its joint-venture partners, Commonfund Realty Inc. and New England Development, Cabot, Cabot & Forbes said.

The development team noted that the project received state approval earlier this month when the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Agency issued a Final Environmental Impact Report.

The first phase of Westwood Station, which includes about 90 retail shops and restaurants, a 125,000-square-foot office building, and 500 residential units, is expected to open in the fall of 2009, the development team said.