Arsenal Apartments and Marketplace

A military arsenal of the past and a prime development opportunity for the future

Gilbane’s multi-faceted team of experts transformed the nation’s second oldest military arsenal located in Watertown, Massachusetts into a mixed-use residential, retail, and business community. This community contains Arsenal Apartments, Watertown’s first subsidized apartments for the elderly and disabled.

Project Overview

39-acre parcel contains a community center consisting of 700,000-SF of retail space, 36 condominiums, 100,000-SF of office space, 2,500 parking spaces, and 156 affordable housing units
Site is registered on the ASCE’s List of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks and the US National Register of Historic Places, with original buildings designed by renowned architect Alexander Parris
Services included negotiation with Watertown Redevelopment Authority, Massachusetts Historical Society and multiple local groups as well as community relations/impact
Arsenal Apartments, a 156-unit affordable community
- Apartments are rent-controlled with residents paying only one-third of adjusted gross income for rent, if qualified
- Property features a community room, surface parking lot, laundry rooms, a beautifully landscaped courtyard, balconies, and a gazebo area
- Carefully rehabilitated quadrangle buildings and a new medium-rise building reflect the size and appearance of the existing buildings
- Located in Watertown’s East End just steps from the Charles River – accessible to public transportation with an MBTA bus stop just outside the main entrance (with routes to Boston and Cambridge)
Arsenal Marketplace received the International Council of Shopping Centers award for Innovative Design and Construction