AMHERST — A project to bring six new condominiums to downtown at the former home of a prominent Amherst businessman is moving forward.
The Zoning Board of Appeals recently issued a special permit to Linda Muerle, of South East Street, that will allow her to renovate the existing “gothic cottage” home at 32 North Prospect St. into two condominiums, and to construct a new townhouse building with four condominiums at the rear of the property.
According to the application from Muerle, of Consulting Design, filed with the Planning Department, “the six condominium units are being designed to attract buyers who are looking for a quiet, higher-end, in-town primary residence with specific amenities such as garages and first floor master bedroom suites.”
The existing home, built in 1871, was the residence of the late Donald Hastings, whose father, Asa, started A.J. Hastings, the newsdealer and stationery store that opened in 1914 and remains an anchor of the commercial district on South Pleasant Street’s Merchant’s Row. Donald Hastings ran the store after his father’s death in 1953 until the 1980s.
Depending on when construction begins, the first condominium units will be sold either next summer or spring 2018, with projections showing that they could be marketed at prices ranging from $499,000 to $689,000. A vintage barn and garage on site are also being renovated.
Bringing more people to live in downtown is a concept embedded in the town’s master plan and follows other housing projects, such as Marsh Condominium at 151 Amity St., a five-unit project which opened in 2008 in a renovated former funeral home, along with the upscale apartments in the Kendrick Place and Boltwood Place buildings and the yet-to-be-built One East Pleasant.
Amherst Business Improvement District Executive Director Sarah la Cour said the 32 North Prospect St. project fits with ideas the organization has supported.
“Having more housing stock of any price point frees up other units in town and brings more people into downtown on foot,” la Cour said.
Jerry Guidera, who served as interim executive director of the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce and worked on creating a neighborhood of mostly single-family homes near town center on Gray Street a few years ago, said Amherst should benefit from this project.
“If we have to repurpose a historic home to create more density, this is the right way to do it,” Guidera said.
Muerle has overseen several projects in Northampton, including the Phillips Place Condominiums, which includes the former Turcotte residence that is featured in the book “Running With Scissors” by Augusten Burroughs. Other condominium projects in Northampton by Muerle are located on Pomeroy Terrace, Walnut Street and Orchard Street condominiums.
Senior Planner Jonathan Tucker said the special permit was approved with conditions, but the decision has not yet been written, signed and filed with the town clerk and Registry of Deeds. Once it is filed, anyone who objects to the project will have 20 days to file an appeal.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
