Before the March 3 City Council meeting, which was to consider rezoning and a special permit for the much disputed property at 386-390 Watertown Street, two emails circulated, informing some Councilors and the Council President that the property had been sold the day before a key Land Use hearing on February 25.
The owner, John Mula, received $1.5 million for the three parcels of land included in the property. On February 26, the day after the Land Use hearing, the buyer – Newton Park Watertown Realty, LLC – was granted a $5,079,000 mortgage for the same property. The address of that LLC is that of the law firm that has been representing Mr. Mula, and Mr. Mula’s former partner, Nicolas Beaujean is the LLC’s manager. Matthew Eckel, the attorney representing the project, made no reference to the sale or pending sale in his presentation to the Land Use Committee on February 25.
Although the requested zoning change and special permit – which would have allowed a four-story, thirteen-unit building on the land – had failed in the Land Use Committee, there was a general sense that both requests were likely to win approval by the full Council. With the revelation of the sale, however, Council President Marc Laredo referred the two requests back to the Land Use Committee, for consideration as early as next week.
In 2024, the City Council had approved a special permit for the property allowing for three stories and ten units, with fourteen parking spaces and a small commercial space on the first floor. According to Mr. Mula, the currently approved three-story, ten-unit building would no longer be financially feasible for development.
President Laredo cautioned his colleagues not to engage in public commentary on the project since it will be coming before the Council again. He conceded that there might be some need for legal advice from Newton’s Law Department.
Ed. Note: We corrected the amount of the mortgage (not $5.79 million but $5,079,000). We also included links to the quitclaim deed and mortgage referenced.
