Chestnut Hill Realty Adds Amenities, New Units at Norwood Gardens

By Jeffrey Steele, Contributing Writer

Boston—A newly completed Resident Activity Center including an Internet café and fitness facility has come to Norwood Gardens, a 344-unit apartment community in Norwood, Mass. The center is among major components of an ongoing $12 million, five-year improvement campaign at the rental community.

In addition, Chestnut Hill Realty is also in the process of completing a dozen new one-bedroom apartment homes filling a two-story building near the Resident Activity Center. Welcoming first residents this month, the new apartment homes offer contemporary open floor plans, central air conditioning and heating, walk-in closets, in-unit washer/dryers and deluxe kitchens.

A grand opening celebration on September 19 unveiled the 12,600-square-foot clubhouse complex, including the Internet café, fitness center, resident lounge, conference room, movie theater and activity room. Outdoors, residents are able to enjoy a resort-style pool, tennis court and putting green.

Chestnut Hill Realty has owned the property for almost 30 years. Because the unit mix is primarily comprised of two- and three-bedroom apartment homes, the company did not want to pass on the opportunity to add 12 one-bedroom units in an infill location. “As far as the Resident Activity Center goes, it replaced an aging pool and tennis courts with something special,” George McHugh, president of the property asset management division of Chestnut Hill Realty, tells MHN.

“The bottom line is we had the cash on hand to build the two pieces, and with construction costs low due to the recession, we felt it was a great time to move forward with this project.”

The only real hurdle in making the project a reality was arriving at the optimal design for the site, McHugh adds. The design had to allow for the addition of a modern activity center and 12 units in a way that would add value for residents, but would also complement the existing 332 apartment homes.

“We also wanted to provide one-bedroom units that were larger than most of the product hitting the market today,” he says.

“The new one-bedrooms have great finishes, open layouts that are in high demand today, and spectacular views. We worked closely with various groups in the town, got it permitted and built it out. It all came together very nicely. Our residents have responded favorably to the new amenities, especially the pool, fitness center, Internet café and multi-function room, which has already been booked numerous times for private parties.”

The Resident Activity Center is ideal for today’s lifestyles, McHugh adds. “In today’s market, with people often detached from each other in their busy lives, we wanted to create something that really helped enhance the sense of community we promote through our mission statement, ‘Managing People’s Homes with Pride.’”

Chestnut Hill Realty acted as its own general contractor in constructing the Resident Activity Center and the new units. The company hired, supervised and coordinated the outside subcontractors.