At a time when good news is at a premium, Procopio Companies’ plans for building a 10-story, 300-apartment building in Central Square, Lynn, and a six-story, 147-unit building on nearby Baldwin Street is great news.
Procopio has already mapped out a track record for success in downtown Lynn with a $90 million building between Munroe Street and Oxford Street scheduled to be completed by year’s end.
Its two just-announced projects represent an additional $160 million combined investment in Lynn that could not be better news for a city that has experienced a development drought on any significant scale until a year ago when Kevin and Mike Procopio started work on Munroe Street.
The company took a vacant lot where vegetables were grown and started work on a building that will bring new residents into the city who will spend money here and pay property taxes.
The Central Square and Baldwin Street projects will also transform vacant lots into future homes for people who will spend part of their incomes locally and use the commuter rail line to get to jobs, shopping and entertainment in Boston.
Procopio is the catalyst transforming downtown. But it is by no means the sole contributor to this transformation. Zoning changes enacted during the last 20 years set the stage initially for reusing downtown industrial buildings as residences.
More importantly, the city’s streamlined site plan review process coupled with the “by-right” designation allows Procopio’s new projects to move ahead with proposed spring 2021 construction starts and projected 2023 completion dates.
Imagine three high-density residential projects combining with the city’s multi-year commitment to fostering arts downtown and ongoing infrastructure improvements on Oxford, Washington Street and you have a recipe for revival and renewal.
Never fear, Procopio’s Central Square and Baldwin Street plans will attract critics calling for affordable housing. These naysayers will stay predictably true to form and ignore the economic benefits created by bringing new residents to downtown and filling city coffers with tax dollars that can make Lynn a safer and better place for everyone.
Building permit fees from the Central Square project alone are anticipated to generate $1 million for the city.
Procopio’s plans call for retail and restaurant space in both projects and those opportunities translate into new businesses and employment in a downtown that has seen precious few of these opportunities until the last three or four years.
Lynn development officials and business leaders have for decades aimed high with ideas to revive downtown. Procopio’s projects represent a commitment by a developer attracted to the city’s qualities and committed to becoming a partner in its success.
