Members of the Cedar Grove Civic Association gave their unanimous approval to a developer’s plan to convert an existing two-family house on Gallivan Blvd. into a 12-unit complex during a 55-minute meeting last Wednesday evening (April 24). The re-developed property at 608 Gallivan Blvd. across from St. Brendan’s Church will also include green space and 20 basement-level parking spots accessed from a curb cut and entry on Gallivan.

“We understand that the units are going to be for sale, though the developer may hold some as rentals,” said Steve Bickerton, Jr., president of the association. “I’m sure that decision will be dictated by market conditions at the time of the completion of the project.”

As to the proposed 20 parking spaces, Bickerton called that “realistic given that the project is not transit oriented and it is a bit of a walk to the closest T station. We are aware that BPDA review might want the developer to reduce the number of spaces on site since there is a theory at BPDA that if projects don’t have parking, the end users will not have cars.

“In our experience, that is not realistic, and the result ends up being that end users simply park their cars on the street. In this case, where street parking is nonexistent on Gallivan Blvd., the impacts would be on the surrounding side streets. For this reason, we hope that BPDA allows the developer to move forward with the 20 proposed spaces. 

The three-story building will include a pair of two-bedroom units on the first floor, five two-bedroom units and a studio apartment on the second level, and four two-bedroom units on the third, according to James Christopher of 686 Architects, who made a presentation to the group on behalf of the developer, Cronan Dempsey.

“It’s going to take probably about a year to complete the permit and then we will get into construction,” said Christopher. “We’re probably a year away.”

The meeting was chaired by executive board member Lauren Woods and lasted roughly 55 minutes. 

Abutter John O’Toole said that the community and Christopher have come a long way since the project was first proposed. “We were miles and miles apart at the beginning,” said O’Toole. “We had many meetings and they listened.” He motioned for a vote which was unanimous in favor of going forward.

Executive board member Lauren Woods, who chaired the meeting, reminded Christopher that “if anything drastically changes in terms of what you showed this neighborhood, you will come back to show everybody.” He replied, “I will keep you guys informed; any big changes will come back to you.”

O’Toole also offered updates regarding The Friends of St. Brendan group, which is nearing the end of its one-year plan to reinvigorate the congregation through increased attendance, offertory collections, and fundraising. 

O’Toole reported that the goals of the 501(c)3 organization are being met thus far and said he is confident that with the 90th anniversary of the original parish approaching, fundraising and attendance will continue to flourish.

“We have new faces and new energy, and the Mass attendance has nearly doubled,” O’Toole said. 

BPD Officer Michael Keaney was on hand to report that crime in the Cedar Grove area has been low recently. District 3 City Councillor John FitzGerald, who was also in attendance, was also on hand to discuss his first four months in office. “We’re here to listen and hear from you guys,” he told the group.

For updates on events visit cedargrovecivic.com.