Developer eyes Swampscott inn for condominium project

SWAMPSCOTT – The weather-beaten fisherman idolized on the Town Seal vanished from Swampscott’s waterfront long ago. Now, a waterfront institution evoking that iconic image might be next, as a developer has proposed razing Cap’n Jack’s Inn to build a 16-unit condominium project called The Concordia at Swampscott.Parturk LLC of Marblehead and Paradise Construction LLC submitted an application to the Zoning Board of Appeals on Tuesday that seeks five special permits and a variance to replace the 11,031 square-foot, 25-unit inn (which is spread across three buildings on three lots but is treated as one property) with a three-and-a-half story, 33,713 square-foot building. The petitioner, who has until Sept. 1 to exercise an option on the inn that they purchased in December 2011, according to documents in the application, asks the board for a variance for a residential building on the commercially zoned property. They submit that the inn is already a nonconforming use and the multi-family dwelling will be “less detrimental and may be granted.”Developers are also seeking special permits or a variance for developing four percent more of the lot area than is allowed, for not conforming to minimum open space, front yard set back and height requirements, if necessary. Developers are also requesting a permit necessary to construct a basement-level garage including 30 spaces. Developer Barry Turkanis did not respond to requests for comment. Building Inspector Alan Hezekiah and architect Robert Zarelli of Marblehead could not be reached for comment. Bruce Paradise did not respond until after deadline.Innkeepers David and Mary Jo Rooney, who have owned the property since 1995, were surprised at the news.”We had an idea they weren’t going to use it as is but didn’t know of any specific plans,” Mary Jo Rooney said.According to the preliminary plans submitted to the Zoning Board of Appeals, the three main floors of the building will have five two-bedroom and two-bath units each. Amenities in each unit include an open floor plan with combined living room, dining room and kitchen, a walk-in closet in the master bedroom and separate tub and shower in the master bathroom. Units facing the ocean will also have office space and decks. The attic level will contain a penthouse suite.The building will be set back approximately 20 feet from the sidewalk, which is further than the existing structures, in order to accommodate a semi-circular driveway. The building’s proposed height, according to the application, will reach 35 feet, three feet higher than the tallest building currently on the site.The Rooneys said that the property has been an inn since the nineteenth century and recalled that it used to be the second hotel after the Holiday Inn that visitors would see when traveling north on Route 1A from Logan Airport. Originally named “The Priscilla,” Cap’n Jack purchased the property in the mid-1960s. He sold the three buildings that currently make up the inn to the Rooneys in 1995, but they said he kept a fourth parcel which became the Ocean Watch Condominiums. That project involved some of the same developers, Town Clerk Sue Duplin said.Duplin said that the Zoning Board of Appeals will review the proposal at either its April or May meeting, but the meeting has not yet been officially scheduled.