Ellery Street Housing Proposals Spur Appeals, Zoning Debate

Ellery Street — a mid-Cambridge corridor facing an early wave of development under the city’s zoning overhaul — has become a flashpoint in the debate over boosting housing supply amid a growing shortage.

This week, city commissions took up two proposals on the street: the redevelopment of an existing building at 60 Ellery St. into a larger multifamily structure and a new six-story apartment building at 88 Ellery St.

The 60 Ellery St. project — first proposed last May — has faced steady pushback from residents throughout the design approval process. Because it sits in mid-Cambridge, the development is subject to review by the Mid-Cambridge Neighborhood Conservation District Commission.

Though the NCD approved the project in August 2025, residents with the Ellery Square Owners Association have continued efforts to halt it. The group retained the Braintree-based firm Marcus, Errico, Emmer & Brooks and filed an appeal with the Cambridge Historical Commission challenging the NCD’s decision.

At a CHC hearing on Thursday, attorney Seth B. Barnett argued the NCD skipped required steps in approving a plan that would demolish the existing building at 60 Ellery St.

“Demolition was treated as a given here,” he said. “The Commission simply worked on improving the replacement building and treated demolition as automatic.”

He contended the NCD was obligated — not merely permitted — to weigh the building’s physical condition, potential hardship, and alternatives to demolition. None of those factors received meaningful analysis, he argued.

“There is no evidence in this record that demolition of this building at 60 Ellery Street was necessary,” Barnett said. “It was barely discussed.”

CHC Executive Director Charles M. “Charlie” Sullivan pushed back, noting that the building’s condition — considered to be good — had been weighed in the broader context of the project.

“If a claim of substantial hardship is not made, there is nothing to consider,” Sullivan said. He concluded that the NCD had acted within its authority, and recommended the CHC deny the appeal.

The CHC unanimously rejected the appeal Thursday, though not without pointed commentary. Commissioner Liz Lyster said the tension reflects broader frustration with the city’s zoning ordinance, which legalized multifamily development citywide last February.

“This is a direct result of people’s frustration with how the new zoning is affecting their lives, and I wish that the City Council would hear what’s going on in these discussions and understand the level of stress and discontent and concern,” Lyster said.

Commissioner Kyle Sheffeld echoed that sentiment, urging neighbors to pursue alternatives to appeals while acknowledging the commission’s limited role in interpreting the intent of the new zoning.

“We have to stay within a very finite lane, and that lane does not deal with easements and land use,” he said.

One block away, the NCD’s Architects Committee is weighing a separate six-story, roughly 32-unit proposal at 88 Ellery St. Architect Dan Anderson presented a redesign Tuesday for the site adjacent to an already-approved project at 84-86 Ellery St.

Anderson acknowledged the challenge of placing a large contemporary building behind a well-preserved 1870s Italianate house. The NCD found the design markedly improved over earlier iterations, but committee members said it still risks clashing with surrounding buildings — including the historic home.

“I think that the play of all these materials is, to my mind, a bit distracting,” NCD Chair Tony Hsiao said. “I feel like it’s starting to speak louder than I think it needs to.”

The NCD granted a continuance, sending Anderson back to revise the proposal once again.

—Staff writer Adelaide L. D. Roger can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on X @adelaidelrg.