Less than a month after closing on the purchase of the property, developer Churchill James has significantly reduced its plans for the redevelopment of The Cove residential tower in Worcester’s Canal District.
The project, located at the site of the former Cove Music Hall near Polar Park, has shrunk from a 13-story, 300-unit proposal to a seven-story, 173-unit development, according to a Dec. 17 letter to the Worcester Planning Board.
The Cove is one of two proposed housing complexes in the area expected to help pay for the $160-million cost of building the Polar Park baseball stadium.
The016.com first reported the news of The Cove development shrinking in size.
The architectural team of Gold Block Real Estate LLC, an affiliate of Worcester-based Churchill James, submitted the revised application. Gold Block finalized a purchase of the properties for about $3 million from the Worcester Redevelopment Authority in early December.
Along with the residential units, the development will include 16,000 square feet of commercial space including a bowling alley and office space.
This is not the first Polar Park satellite development to announce a shrink in size and investment. In September 2020, a report showed Madison Properties’ mixed-use development would shrink from 262 to 125 hotel rooms and the assessed value of the residential building and laboratory building would decrease.
