Following the successful passage of a ballot initiative on Super Tuesday, the town of Newton, Massachusetts is moving forward with a proposed 23-acre community development plan that could bring up to 800 new housing units to the site of a former strip mall. 

The so-called Northland Newton Development project will bring hundreds of new homes to the area, including 140 income-restricted units. In addition, the 14-building development will create 180,000 square feet of office spaces and 115,000 square feet of retail. The development won local City Council approval back in December 2019, but was put to a public vote due to fierce disagreement over a necessary zoning change involved with the approval. 

The project is developed by the locally-based Northland Investment Corporation, a group that created the strip mall currently located on the site back in 1978. Stantec, Cube 3, SGA, and SOM are providing design services for the project. A statement on the project website explains, "Over two generations, patiently assembled the critical mass necessary to create a 21st century green neighborhood that focuses on sustainability, wellness, connectivity, and permeability in a vibrant, live, work and play Newton gateway."

For the project, the designers have creates a set of buildings that use conventional materials like brick and wood panel siding to match existing neighborhood styles, including those of the adjacent Saco-Pettee Historic District, which is made up of a collection of red brick industrial facilities and vernacular worker housing units daring to the 1890s. 

Plans for the development indicate that construction on the project could start as soon as 2021.