Zoning board reverses previous decision, approves 340-unit apartment project

After a long and contentious process, the Zoning Board of Appeals on Tuesday overturned its own recent decision, granting a comprehensive special permit to developer The Davis Cos. for a 340-unit apartment building at 455 Totten Pond Road.

The building, which will be named The Residences on Winter, has been in front of the board since The Davis Cos. applied for the permit in early 2025. 

The ZBA on April 14 had voted 3-2 to deny the permit, after expressing concerns about the project’s affordability and impact on local infrastructure.

However, at its April 28 meeting the ZBA went into executive session to discuss the application again and afterward took another vote on the permit — this time voting 3-2 to approve it. Board members Glenna Gelineau and Matthew Deveaux again voted against approving the permit, but Stephen Taranto voted in favor of it — a flip from his earlier vote.

The final conditions laid out in the decision filed with the city clerk resemble the conditions the developer and the city’s Law Department presented before the board’s first vote. 

The developer has agreed to provide 72 units at rents affordable for households making 80% of the area median income and 13 units at rates affordable for households making 60% AMI. The building will impose a veterans’ preference criterion on 10% of the affordable units, and a preference for local residents on 70% of them. No three-bedroom units will be included at the 60% AMI price point. It will also provide at least 36 free parking spots for affordable units and will ensure the units are not charged additional fees for water use.

The developer will further provide $2 million in mitigation funds for the city to compensate for the development’s impact on city infrastructure. That money will include funds for sewer improvements in the area, if the city determines they’re necessary to support the new building; a new sidewalk along the north side of Winter Street; and, if money is left over, additional funding for Waltham’s schools, fire and police services to cover the costs of expanding to fit the new district. Contributions to these departments have been included in agreements withprevious Chapter 40B developments approved by the city. 

None of the ZBA’s members responded by the publication time to questions about what changed about the project since the board initially rejected it. 

The Davis Cos. applied for a comprehensive special permit under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40B. This law streamlines the process for developers to apply for and obtain necessary municipal permits to construct housing, as long as at least a quarter of it meets state standards of affordability. The state has required that zoning boards prove a housing development creates significant harm to a community in order to reject a permit application outright.