Lamartine Street is latest epicenter of development concerns around Polar Park

WORCESTER ― It’s not a secret that development projects are booming around Polar Park.

Supporters say this activity is good for business, because it will generate more tax revenue to pay for city services, generate jobs and provide much-needed housing, some of it designated as affordable.

However, there are those who believe some of the projects are moving too fast, that they don’t fit the existing character of the neighborhood, and that the city isn’t listening to their concerns.

One such group of residents recently stood next to a vacant lot at 39 Lamartine St. in the Green Island section of the city, a neighborhood boundary that includes Polar Park.

They say the property is a microcosm of what is happening near the ballpark, as several vacant lots on Lamartine Street could be developed into tall buildings, causing property values to skyrocket and resulting in the area becoming unaffordable for long-time homeowners and renters.

Too big, too tall

They believe the six-story building proposed for 39 Lamartine St. by developer Polar Views LLC is too tall, too big and doesn't match this working-class neighborhood of three-deckers and single-family homes.

“This is just the beginning,” said Jeff Conroy, who worked as a mailman for 33 years, grew up in the neighborhood and lives on Grosvenor Street, a home his wife’s family has owned for several generations. “Developers are going to take every lot they can. It’s all about the money.”

Other longtime Green Island homeowners congregated with Conroy at 39 Lamartine, including Sandra Bishop, Paul Rheaume, Sean McClure and Patricia Hobbs.

Hobbs could be considered the leader of this group, having taken over that mantle from the late Lorraine Laurie , who died in March and spent decades advocating for Green Island.

It's not just the height

Hobbs and her fellow residents expressed concern not only about the height of what’s being proposed at 39 Lamartine St. but also their belief that it will exacerbate a lack of parking in the neighborhood as development soars, especially on game days at Polar Park.

Hobbs told a City Council standing committee in March that she had submitted a citizen petition to the city calling for no parking anytime on a stretch of Lamartine because too many parked cars create dangerous conditions for pedestrians and motorists. Her efforts appear to have paid off: Lamartine between Millbury Street and Green Island Boulevard is classified “No parking anytime,” according to a city spokesman, who said a work order has been issued to install no-parking signs.

This band of residents also fear if projects like 39 Lamartine move ahead, then property values will skyrocket and the neighborhood will become unaffordable for many longtime residents.

McClure lives in an apartment building he owns on Grosvenor, located across the street from 39 Lamartine. He knows he'll benefit from higher rents if property values climb, but he worries about one of his tenants who has lived at the property since before he owned it. Higher rents may force that tenant to move out.

“Why is the city and developers changing the face of the neighborhood? If they care, they would build projects compatible with the neighborhood,” said McClure.

This group wants something built at 39 Lamartine, but would rather see it smaller, pointing to the nearby seven-story The Revington apartment building located across from Polar Park and in clear view from 39 Lamartine, another example, this group says, of a project too large for the neighborhood.

Developer: 39 Lamartine is compatible

Polar Views is owned by the husband-and-wife team of Daniel and Rebecca Yarnie. Both grew up in Worcester and now live in Sutton. They say their proposed project is compatible in a neighborhood that is evolving.

They said their proposal is smaller than many projects the city has approved in the neighborhood, including The Revington, and they’re happy to meet with neighbors about their concerns. However, the couple said they’re not going to lower the height at 39 Lamartine because the design, including 36 apartments units, is necessary to make the project economically feasible for themselves and their investors.

The 40 underground and street-level parking spaces planned for the development is 20 less than the building would require, according to current zoning. So, the Yarnies will seek relief from the city’s regulatory bodies.

They said their project would include six units designated as affordable, including four at 80% of area median income and two at 60%.

Cares about Worcester

Daniel Yarnie stressed that he’s not an out-of-town developer who doesn't care about the city. He described his family’s struggle to survive in Worcester, and how that perspective drives him to build projects that help the city’s neighborhoods.

Yarnie said his father, Edward Nee Yarnie, immigrated to Worcester in the 1960s. His dad worked at Wyman-Gordon for 20 years and died when Yarnie was 14. Yarnie remembers telling his father that he would own property in Worcester one day.

“I’m not just coming in trying put up buildings,” said Daniel Yarnie. "I care about the community. Worcester means too much to me.”

Daniel Yarnie's past includes a 2008 charge of armed assault with intent to murder in a case that started with a fight and ended with two men stabbed. Charges were dropped two years later. Prosecutors did not give a written explanation for the decision. Yarnie’s lawyer told prosecutors his client maintained he had been misidentified and was not present when the altercation occurred.

Yarnie said he “lost everything” from that experience and is slowly rebuilding his life, including development projects with his wife that help Worcester's neighborhoods.

“My heart is in Worcester,” he said.

Downtown revitalization plan

What is built on those vacant lots and other properties along Lamartine Street is part of the city’s downtown urban revitalization plan . A 2018 City Council vote expanded the plan’s boundary to include several properties along Lamartine Street.

At that council meeting, then-City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. said that extending the boundary included protections for the neighborhood and developers.

“This gives the city and the neighborhood some defense too,” said Augustus in a recording of the meeting . “If some developer came in and purchased properties and decided we’re going to put up something that we all don’t think is right for the neighborhood or for the development, we could protect them from a strip mall coming in, or something completely inconsistent with what we're looking to see.

“It’s also protecting the neighborhood and protecting the development as well.”

Augustus’ protection comment is open to interpretation. Hobbs said it’s about looking out for neighborhoods so that something incompatible isn’t built.

“Augustus' statement is reassuring to me that if a developer came in with something inconsistent with the style, look, and feel of the neighborhood, then the residents’ concerns would be heard, or we could be protected in some way,” said Hobbs.

When asked for his interpretation, Peter Dunn, the city’s chief development officer, said it would have to be “something totally in contradiction to the urban revitalization plan’s objectives and goals.”

The plan, said Dunn, is helpful for developing vacant and underutilized lots to create jobs and housing. “We see that kind of investment as a good thing,” he said.

If a proposed project isn’t compatible with the plan’s goals, the Worcester Redevelopment Authority and the city can buy the property, said Dunn. Before that can happen, Dunn said, the City Council and the state must approve an amendment to the revitalization plan before negotiations can start on the purchase.

No properties in the revitalization plan boundary, including several on Lamartine Street, have submitted plans that would trigger the city to step in to stop a project, said Dunn.

“It does not rise to that level of severity,” said Dunn of the proposed six-story development at 39 Lamartine.

Concerns beyond 39 Lamartine

Hobbs is concerned that beyond 39 Lamartine, more properties in the corridor could be developed into large projects incompatible with the neighborhood. She worries what the Yarnies will build on their property at 10 Grosvenor St., located across from one side of 39 Lamartine.

She also believes there’s a risk the Yarnies may have their eyes on properties owned by Wyman-Gordon at 55 Lamartine and 30 Lodi St. — that the couple could buy them and lump them with 10 Grosvenor to build something out of scale with the neighborhood.

The Yarnies said they plan to build a four-story, 12-unit apartment building at 10 Grosvenor. They also said they’ve tried to contact Wyman-Gordon, through their representatives, to see if the company is interested in selling 55 Lamartine and 30 Lodi.

At the moment, that appears to be a nonstarter. “We do not plan to sell any properties in the foreseeable future,” said David Dugan, director of corporate communications at Precision Castparts, Wyman-Gordon's parent company.

Another property that could come for sale is the city’s Inspectional Services building at 25 Meade St., located behind the Yarnies' 39 Lamartine property. If it does, Daniel Yarnie indicated he would be interested in buying it. As for what he would put there, he said it’s too soon to tell.

The Inspectional Services building does not fall within the boundary of the urban revitalization plan. No specific vision or plan has been created for the spot, said Dunn, adding the building's parking lot is used by city staff.

Saddened building torn down

As Hobbs and the other residents commented on their concerns about 39 Lamartine, they were saddened by the Yarnies' decision to tear down a building on the property that some residents considered part of Green Island's historic fabric. It dated back to 1883 and once served as Worcester's first neighborhood police station.

Hobbs remembers going into the station as a child for a cold drink of water after she and her friends had a game of kickball when she was a student at the former Lamartine Street School, the current Inspectional Services building.

The building was deteriorating and unsafe and would have been too expensive to bring up to code, according to the Yarnies. "We wish we could have done something. We looked at all the angles, but it didn't make any sense," said Rebecca Yarnie.

The building was not historically listed and not subject to the city’s demolition delay ordinances.

How will it play out?

The Yarnies said they are committed to building a project at 39 Lamartine St. that benefits the community but is also economically feasible, given the changing landscape in the Green Island corridor.

"(39 Lamartine) is compatible with development that is happening," said Rebecca Yarnie.

Conroy, who also attended the former Lamartine Street School as a child, believes it's a fait accompli. “The city and the developers are going to do what they want. Money talks.”

On a larger scale, Dunn noted one of the reasons the city wanted to expand the boundary of the urban revitalization plan in 2018 was to create a logical corridor south of Madison Street for potential future planning. Discussions on that front are happening, said Dunn, as the city is talking with Canal District Parking LLC, owners of 9 Langdon St., about a longer-term vision for the property. It’s currently a parking lot.

Dunn also noted the revitalization plan runs for 20 years through 2036, and the city is working on executing some of the initial phases with developer Madison Properties, south of Madison Street along Green Island Boulevard. When those building projects are done, the city will shift its focus to the Lamartine Street corridor.

“We’ll have a better sense of how the needs and opportunities are evolving as a result of the initial phase,” said Dunn in an email.

Hobbs noted that Green Island residents told city officials in neighborhood meetings their preference for smaller residential developments, like townhouses, to be constructed on available lots. Some properties, including 65 Lamartine St. and 9 Langdon St., have a proposed use of multifamily residential/townhouse in the urban revitalization plan. However, Hobbs is skeptical townhouses will be built.

Hobbs lives in an 1870 home on Grosvenor Street that has been in her family for four generations. She cares deeply about her neighborhood and didn’t sound optimistic that resident concerns will stop 39 Lamartine from becoming a six-story apartment building.

“I don’t think we’re going to get support from the city. It just seems like they’ll end up getting what they want, unfortunately.”

Contact Henry Schwan at henry.schwan@telegram.com . Follow him on X: @henrytelegram .

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Lamartine Street is latest epicenter of development concerns around Polar Park