PEABODY — Entrants into the old O’Shea Mansion on Washington Street — where work is underway to convert the 155-year-old property into a bed-and-breakfast complete with a speakeasy, indoor and outdoor dining, and eight hotel rooms — will be greeted by a glass floor, letting them peer into the live music playing in the speakeasy below their feet.
It’s these modern touches that Developer Ed Greeley, who bought the property in late December 2021 for $751,000, along with two others on Washington Street, says will make The Bell Estate stand out.
“It’ll be little things like that,” he said. “You don’t typically see things like that.”
Since Greeley bought the property, he and his team have worked to renovate the historic building, infusing modern touches while taking care to preserve its history, which has roots as far back as the Revolutionary War. The project is six months ahead of schedule, Greeley said, and will come in under the $6 million budget he first laid out.
While Greeley is the visionary behind the overhaul of the building, which the city seized in 2015 after Gloucester-based Empire Design & Development bought the building with plans to raze it and replace it with apartments and shops, he gives all the credit for the work being done to revitalize the property to his crew.
“These guys are bringing this property back to historical significance and prominence,” he said during a Wednesday afternoon tour of the construction site. “These guys are taking the vision I had in my head and these guys are making it a reality.”
“Truthfully, I’m like an over-glorified secretary,” Greeley quipped.
The building was first constructed in 1867, Greeley said, but has roots going back at least a century earlier, as 2 Washington St. is the former home of the Bell Inn & Tavern, where a group of North Shore farmers met about a week before the battle of Concord and Lexington in 1775. A tree planted outside the property marks the place where the farmers gathered, Greeley said.
“It’s really the landmark that makes the property special because of its historical significance,” he said. Bringing back that historical significance is one of Greeley’s primary goals with the project. “There’s a significant amount of pride in being part of a project that brings back about a historical property to bring its relevance and its prominence and we’re proud to be a part of it.”
“It’s important to Peabody, probably as important to the city as any [building] based on its historical challenges,” he said.
Thus far, Greeley and his team have already spent $1 million on restoration for the project, restoring and repairing numerous moldings, mantles, walls, exterior siding, and the buildings’ roof, which had holes in it that allowed for rain and snow to come in and filter through the building. The project is ahead of schedule, he said, and should be completed in a year.
“The trajectory we’re on, we’re going to have a two year project done in one and a half,” Greeley said.
Mayor Ted Bettencourt praised Greeley for creating a “destination” for people from across the region.
“This project surpasses even our fondest wishes for what would become of the beautiful O’Shea Mansion,” he said. “It will complement the many other shops and restaurants in a revitalized downtown Peabody and will preserve the precious Revolutionary history for which the Mansion is renowned.”
Greeley is confident that rooms at the estate will fill up quickly once it officially opens its doors.
“[These] rooms will be some of the nicest rooms in the North Shore,” he said. “Anyone with any knowledge of that comfort is going to want to come back. I’m not concerned with being able to fill these rooms.”
All four floors of the mansion will be revitalized by Greeley and his team — with the basement level serving as a speakeasy with live music, the first floor featuring indoor and outdoor dining, and the second and third floors containing four rooms apiece — complete with a bridal suite on the third floor. The carriage house at the back of the property will contain three luxury apartments.
The property will feature modern touches — like the see-through walkway in the entry — to complement the historic features.
“The property has its own personality, we’re not doing away with its personality,” Greeley said. “We’re staying with a traditional restoration in conjunction with modern improvements.
He described the envisioned finished product as “a little bit of modern meets a little bit of historical.”
Greeley said the project could not have gone ahead without the help of Mayor Bettencourt and the city council.
“If it weren’t for the mayor, I doubt this structure would still be here,” he said. “The mayor and his city council went through an awful lot to keep this building intact. I’m fortunate to be a part of that.”
Greeley looks forward to welcoming in those who helped keep the O’Shea mansion upright, and push his proposal forward, back to the property once it’s finally opened.
“Our goal is to open those doors and have everyone who fought come in,” he said.
When he purchased 2 Washington St. from the city, Greeley also acquired 12 Washington St. and 16 Washington St. Greeley plans to tear down the former St. Paul’s Episcopal Church at 12 Washington St., replacing it with ample parking for staff and guests of the bed-and-breakfast.
“We’re part of something that’s larger than ourselves,” he said.
Charlie McKenna can be reached at [email protected]
