Developer withdraws from New Street plan with acknowledgments for several officials
SSG Development has withdrawn its proposal to redevelop a parcel on New Street after listening to concerns raised about the project. Mayor Marc McGovern’s consistent advocacy for more affordable housing convinced us to step aside in deference to Just-a-Start. He deserves singular credit for this result.
In addition, we were very impressed by councillor Dennis Carlone’s expertise and constructive critique in urban planning and councillor Quinton Zondervan’s advocacy for solar energy and a zero net energy building. Councillors Tim Toomey and E. Denise Simmons were consistent advocates for community interests. We’re grateful for their tough but fair review.
As noted, SSG will continue its work in communities that seek quiet, low-traffic, low-impact development to achieve balance and livability in congested neighborhoods. We are grateful to the Cambridge community for the time spent working with us.
George Bachrach, SSG Development
George Bachrach is a partner in SSG Development, which is proposing the New Street project; a former state senator representing Cambridge; and former president of the Environmental League of Massachusetts.
Good riddance to this guy. Mr. Bachrach’s manipulative behavior has no place in this city.
SSG and Mr. Bachrach were not “convinced to step aside” by Mayor McGovern. No, they were instead soundly defeated by a community smart enough to understand when a developer is attempting to manipulate them for his own financial benefit. The affordable units begrudgingly tacked on to the front of their storage building at the last minute were never anything more than a token add-on, a fact that became more and more evident the longer this project was debated by the Council, to say nothing of the optics of housing low-income residents in a warehouse for unwanted stuff. Let’s hope Just-A-Start, a well-respected local non-profit with a track record for community engagement, can be more upfront about their plans for the site.