Anyone know what's going in the old rent-a-car location?

[billharnois.livejournal.com]

Looks kinda bank-ish.

Comments

[ron_newman]

Do you mean the corner of Cutter and Summer, across from the VFW? That's going to be a mixed office-residential-retail building. If you check the 'development' tag we've probably discussed it before.

[billharnois.livejournal.com]

Yeah, 377 Summer. It says it will be commercial on the first floor. My question is what is it?

http://somervillenews.typepad.com/the_somerville_news/2010/05/ground-breaking-in-davis-square.html

[ron_newman]

It's a speculative developer building, not one commissioned by or for a particular occupant. I don't think any lease has been signed yet for the commercial space. I have some vague recollection that the developer promised not to lease it to a restaurant.

A bank would be quite boring.

[wobblymusic.livejournal.com]

Interesting about the restaurant, since there's what looks like a patio of sorts being built out on the Summer Street side that made me think "restaurant!". Did they also promise no coffee shops (not that we need another one)?

[masswich.livejournal.com]

I suspect they are building the ground level commercial/retail because they had to - they mostly wanted to build the residential. So they may eventually get a tenant for the ground level space but may not have one at first.

The building looks OK but I don't like the fact that it has a plaque (covered by plastic right now, but occasionally visible when the plastic blows off) that names the building after the developer. That is always cheesy.

[ron_newman]

Just to be contrary, I think the Hobbs Building (Somerville Theatre) was named after its developer, way back in 1914. And that name is etched in stone.

[somerfriend.livejournal.com]

I'm bothered by buildings switching to residential. There are 2 such buildings changing on Cedar St between Highland and Broadway and the entire Maxpak is a switch from commercial to residential. I live in Somerville because I want to walk to businesses. We also need more jobs to be located in Somerville.

[ron_newman]

This is switching from a single commercial business (a gas station, then a rent-a-car place) to a mixed-use building with commercial, office, and residential all together. That's a win by any standard.