Newton's Development Review Team will evaluate proposals for 12 new housing units across three sites the week of July 22, including a six-unit building in Newton Highlands and a lot subdivision near Beacon Street. Both multifamily projects fall under the city's Village Center Overlay District zoning framework, adopted in 2023.
The three projects, listed on the city's official DRT Snapshot published by the Planning and Development Department, span Wards 3, 5, and 6:
1623-1625 Centre Street: Six-unit residential building
The largest proposal calls for a six-unit residential building on a 7,477-square-foot lot in Newton Highlands, zoned MR2/VC2 (Multi-Residence 2/Village Center 2). The land is listed for sale at $2,675,000 with a pending status, according to MLS records. Under Newton's VC2 zoning, buildings are capped at three-and-a-half stories and a 10,000-square-foot ground footprint.
1535 Beacon Street: Lot subdivision into two three-unit buildings
A five-bedroom Colonial built in 1913 on a 10,890-square-foot lot in Ward 5 would be subdivided into two parcels, each with a three-unit building, for six total units. The site is zoned SR2/MRT (Single Residence 2/Multi-Residence Transit). The MRT designation is part of Newton's VCOD framework, which allows multifamily housing near transit stations. Under MRT rules, new construction is limited to four units per building, with a height cap of two-and-a-half stories and a 1,500-square-foot ground footprint.
3 Wauwinet Road: Raze and rebuild with regrading
In Ward 3, a 1,889-square-foot home built in 1930 would be demolished and replaced with a new single-family house. The DRT Snapshot notes the project involves regrading that may require retaining walls over 4 feet. The property appeared on the Newton Historical Commission's agenda on Thursday, June 26, 2025, for total demolition review, indicating the project has been in process for more than a year. The site is zoned SR2, and the rebuild would be subject to Newton's Residential Facade Build Out Ratio rule, which took effect Sunday, March 1, 2026, limiting a home's front width to 60 percent of the lot's frontage.
The two VCOD-related proposals arrive as the overlay district's housing production remains modest. The VCOD applies to seven village centers and transit stations, covering about 3 percent of Newton's developable land. Former City Councilor Deb Crossley, who helped shape the ordinance, told Fig City News in February 2026 that only about nine units had been built since the district's 2023 adoption. "It's been really slow," Crossley said at the time. "We have about nine units built. Nine, not thousands."
The DRT is an informal pre-application meeting, and the city notes that projects may evolve or be canceled before reaching formal review. No applicant names or architects have been publicly identified for any of the three proposals at this stage.
Residents seeking more information can call Newton's Planning and Development Department at (617) 796-1141.
