Worcester Business Journal

4 Worcester Business Journal | November 3, 2025 | wbjournal.com ECONOMIC FORECAST 2023 INSIGHTS: Community BY LIVIA GERSHON Special to WBJ P eter Dunn, Worcester's chief development officer, said people are oen surprised to learn that Worcester is the second-largest city in New England. "It's because we don't have a lot of towers," he said. "Providence has some. Worcester's more spread out, low rise." With housing a top-of-mind concern in urban areas today, developers and city leaders are looking to tall apartment buildings as part of the solution. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, for example, has proposed allowing buildings up to 700 feet tall, or about 70 stories, in parts of Boston's downtown, largely to provide more housing in the high-cost-of-living city. Of course, Worcester does have some tall buildings. But of the 19 buildings rising 10 stories or more, the newest were built at the start of the 1990s and most date to the 1970s or earlier. "As time went on with some of the is- sues around costs just kept going up and all of that, it just became less feasible," Dunn said. One of Worcester's newest large apart- ment buildings, e Cove at 85 Green St. overlooking the Polar Park baseball stadium, was originally planned for 13 stories and 300 units. It was ultimate- ly downsized to seven floors and 173 apartments before its 2024 opening, with an American Flatbread candlepin bowling and pizza place on the ground floor. e change was partly a result of timing, said omas Keane, a partner with e Cove's Boston-based developer Churchill James. "Construction prices were rising pretty rapidly when we were going out to bid," he said. Similarly, e Menkiti Group has pared down plans for a mixed-use com- plex replacing the Denholm Building at 484-500 Main St., said Mark Rengel, vice president of development at the Washington, D.C. company. Initially proposed in 2023 as two connected 10- and 11-story buildings, the project is now more likely to rise just seven stories, holding about 190 units. e calculus for building a financial- ly successful project is always tricky. Along with investigating construction costs and financing options, Menkiti is seeking subsidies at various levels of government to allow it to meet Worces- ter's inclusive zoning requirements for affordable housing and mitigate the environmental impacts of demolishing the Denholm Building. Menkiti, which is working on other residential projects downtown, wants to be part of restoring vibrancy to the area, Rengel said. "One hundred years ago, there was much more residential density in down- town Worcester," he said. "Everyone that lived downtown supported the restau- rants, service industries, offices." High-rise buildings in city centers are a good way to create needed housing without disturbing wetlands and other natural areas, particularly in an area where land is especially precious, said Dunn. "New England is one of the most densely populated areas in the country," he said. Taller buildings on the horizon Taller buildings may be increasingly viable. Michael Jacobs, a principal with A building taller than 10 stories hasn't opened in the city since 1991, but market conditions may soon make them feasible again Are more Worcester skyscrapers coming? Peter Dunn, City of Worcester chief development officer PHOTO | MATT WRIGHT The Cove, built just beyond Polar Park's right-field wall, was orig- inally planned to be 13 stories be- fore being scaled back to seven floors as construction costs rose.

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