The owners of a three-story brick building on Shrewsbury Street are looking to convert the building into a 44-unit apartment complex.
Parkside Holdings of Worcester has submitted a proposal with the Worcester Zoning Board of Appeals to convert 172-174 Shrewsbury St. into a residential building, holding 39 studio units and five one-bedroom units.
The three-story building has been the site of Worcester Business Journal’s offices since 1991, among other businesses.
Plans call for the interior renovation of the building to convert it to residences, with the additional construction of two new floors atop an existing single-story addition in the rear of the building. The project would entail 17 parking spaces, a new outdoor recreation area, and a covered exterior bicycle storage area, according to documents submitted to the ZBA.
Three of the units are set to be affordable to households with earnings no greater than 60% of the area median income.
Parkside Holdings is owned by Thalita Nataly and Christopher Dernulc of Worcester. The firm purchased 172-174 Shrewsbury St. for $2.3 million from former Worcester City Councilor Phil Palmieri in October 2023.
The project would require variances from the City’s minimum front-yard setback and off-street parking requirements. The request for the variances is slated to be heard during the ZBA meeting on Oct. 27.
The 21,381-square-foot building sits on a narrow 0.44-acre plot in between the East Side Improvement Club and Cristoforo Colombo Park, also known as East Park.
The building is at least 100 years old; it is visible on a 1911 atlas of Worcester available via the State Library of Massachusetts archives. It once served as an auto body garage before it was converted into offices.
The site received a 2025 tax assessment value of $1.89 million, according to City of Worcester property records.
Parkside Holdings is represented by Mark Borenstein of Boston-based law firm Prince Lobel Tye for this project.
Eric Casey is the managing editor at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the manufacturing and real estate industries.
