AMHERST — Site work related to construction of a five-story, mixed-use building at the corner of Amity Street and University Drive is expected to begin before summer, following final approvals from the Planning Board last week.

For the development tentatively titled Campus View, due to its proximity to the University of Massachusetts campus, the board voted unanimously in favor of the site plan review and a series of 72 conditions, including requiring that nine of the 77 units be reserved for low- and moderate-income families.

The project is being undertaken by UDrive Amity LLC, whose manager is Amherst developer Barry Roberts, and would replace two commercial buildings on a 5.3-acre site. Those buildings include the former Rafters Sports Bar and Restaurant at 422 Amity St., a building constructed in 1968 that has been vacant for about 18 months following the closure of a cannabis shop, and the 25 University Drive building, built in 2004, primarily occupied by the offices of Encharter Insurance.

Designs by Kuhn Riddle Architects & Designers of Amherst depict a single, V-shaped building, rising to nearly 60 feet and clad in both brick and metal, with 224 beds inside and 12,200 square feet of commercial space on the ground level.

Tom Reidy, an attorney with Bacon Wilson PC in Amherst, told the Zoning Board of Appeals earlier this month, prior to its granting a variance allowing the building to rise to a height of 59.5 feet, above the 45-foot restriction in the limited business zone, that Roberts is ready to go.

Reidy said he anticipates site work to begin by early May and that work will also coordinate with the town’s construction of a roundabout replacing the signalized intersection.

Occupancy is expected just before the 2026-2027 academic year. “This is a project Mr. Roberts is looking to deliver for August of 2026,” Reidy said.

The project was first presented to the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals in February 2024. But a series of changes have occurred that Reidy explained were based mostly on the rising costs of steel and the town’s Conservation Commission review.

First pitched as two, four-story buildings, with 85 units and 259 beds, and 11,000 square feet of commercial space, adjustments had to be made, Reidy said. The biggest was eliminating the so-called “podium build,” using steel, that would have allowed parking on the ground level of the building. Reidy said the building will now be constructed entirely out of wood. The elimination of one building also meant that the 160 parking spaces can all be behind the building.

The variance for the height came because the seven test pits, determining the groundwater and soil conditions, showed that the stormwater system would only work by raising the building. The Zoning Board of Appeals approved this based on a hardship associated with the high water table.

Even with the various adjustments to the development, Reidy told the Zoning Board of Appeals that it has been well received by boards and there have been limited objections to the project.

“We think that this fits into what we’re trying to do,” Reidy said about the requested height adjustment.

Reidy said the development also should be consistent with other projects that may come in an overlay district along University Drive to encourage more housing development.

The Planning Board’s final approval came with little discussion, after extensive deliberation about conditions at a February meeting, such as requiring an on-site manager who is also a full-time resident at the property, that lighting be dark sky compliant and downcast and that landscaping be maintained according to plans.

The board also issued a series of findings, including that the “development is reasonably consistent with respect to setbacks, placement of parking, landscaping, and entrances and exits with surrounding buildings and development.”

“Thank you all and good luck, and we can’t wait to see your project,” said Chairman Doug Marshall.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.