393-397
A proposed redevelopment of a Shrewsbury Street property into a five-floor apartment building received approval from the Planning Board. Wei Dong Wang, the owner of Baba Sushi on Park Avenue, plans to redevelop a property at 393-397 Shrewsbury St. with a 24-unit apartment building. Wang’s holding company, 318 Park LLC, wants to construct 16 one-bedroom apartments and eight two-bedroom units. Two units would be accessible. 318 Park LLC purchased the 18,500-square-foot property in December 2021 for a total of $895,000. The site currently hosts a three-decker that would be razed.
224
Auburn-based developer Lundgren Equity Partners, through the holding company the 224 Shrewsbury Street Realty Trust, is planning to redevelop the former spot of the popular '50s and '60s burger joint Speedy's Drive-In Restaurant at 224 Shrewsbury St. According to planning documents, the proposed building would be six floors and have 87 units of market-rate apartments. The site is now a parking lot with 67 spaces. The developer is proposing that seven of the apartment units would be accessible. The proposed building would be about 89,650 square feet, including one loading space and 54 parking spaces.
544
The operator of a planned downtown seafood restaurant and the owner of the Main Street property appear to have come to a resolution over ventilation issues that held up renovations. City employees told the License Commission that they received an email saying the operators of the Shaking Crab, a Newton-based restaurant chain, have worked out the matter. The building, at 544 Main St., is owned by the Menkiti Group, a development company that has bought a handful of downtown properties in recent years. The company paid $2.85 million for the building in 2018. The Shaking Crab bills itself as a Cajun seafood restaurant.
55
Nuestra, a restaurant with Puerto Rican cuisine, recently shut down its restaurant at the Bull Mansion, 55 Pearl St. Nuestra owner Natalie Rodriguez said her business will shift solely to catering. The restaurant owners leased the building, often making use of the second-floor ballroom where they catered celebratory events. Rodriguez said she couldn’t pinpoint one reason over others for the closing, but she showed confidence in saying that the decision remains a purely business move. There are no immediate plans for another dine-in location. The mansion is owned by Rhode Island-based Arkland LLC, which bought it in 2020 for $1.16 million.
503
The home of the iconic Wexford House for nearly 40 years will come back to life by early next year when a Shrewsbury restaurant relocates to the spot. Pho Sure, a Vietnamese restaurant that has done business at White City Plaza in Shrewsbury since 2014, is slated to move into the property after ongoing renovations are completed. Son Vo, the owner of Pho Sure, and his family purchased the Wexford House property, 503 Shrewsbury St., in November 2021 for $1,400,000. Wexford House closed in mid-March 2020 with intentions to reopen. When that proved futile, the owners decided to close the doors for good.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Business Matters: Central Mass. by the Numbers