Saint Polycarp Village Master Plan

The Saint Polycarp Village project involved the masterplanning and redevelopment of a 3.5-acre church campus at a gateway location in Somerville. Davis Square Architects and Somerville Community Corporation led an effort to up-zone the site and reconfigure a dangerous intersection, improving pedestrian safety and site access. The three ensuing phases of construction added 84 family apartments, 3 neighborhood-focused retail spaces, a community room and terrace, a management office, under-building parking, and a variety of public greenspaces such as a tot lot and rain garden.

All apartments have air conditioning and open kitchens, and most have balconies and access to indoor bike storage rooms. The final phase is LEED-Platinum Certified, and the entire project features extraordinary thermal efficiency, solar-heated domestic water, over 172,000 kilowatts of solar photovoltaic generation (420 PV panels), and a vegetated roof. The project is an excellent example of smart growth by redeveloping an underutilized urban site, and offering a range of housing opportunities, neighborhood-oriented commercial uses, and greenspaces.