Senior Care Facility Developer Buys Newbury College In Brookline

BROOKLINE, MA — The mystery is over: A senior care developer inked a deal to buy the Newbury College Campus. The developer, Welltower out of Ohio, is planning to develop the east side of the campus and is offering to sell the west side of the property - closest to Fisher Hill Park - to the town.

The sale was for $34 million, according to The Boston Globe.

A number of Town Meeting members and residents have expressed hope that the nearly 8-acre property, which came on the market this spring, could help ease crowding concerns at Brookline Public Schools or use it for town outdoor swimming pool or Department of Public Works. Although no one seemed to be able to agree on what it could be used for, they did seem to agree it was worth purchasing. Except, Brookline's bid was not accepted. It was not public just which developer's bid did get chosen - until now.

"Welltower has expressed a desire for the Town Meeting necessary to approve the zoning and related actions to be held by sometime in early March 2020," Brookline Select Board Chairperson Bernard Green announced Tuesday night. "The Town will make every reasonable effort to meet that schedule, and has encouraged Welltower to expedite its process."

Greene said because of the encouragement, Welltower has committed to meet with the Fisher Hill neighborhood residents on Sept. 26 and with a committee charged to evaluate the proposed redevelopment on Oct. 3.

Select Board Member Heller proposed a slate of candidates to the committee.

Greene said to look for more information about Welltower’s proposal and the town's potential land acquisition, public meetings and the like in the weeks to come.

"This is the beginning of a process that will hopefully culminate in a Special Town Meeting in early March 2020," he said.

In July, Brookline agreed to spend $100,000 to evaluate whether the western portion of the old Newbury College property could be used for a school or some other town use.

Some residents worry that without a consensus on what exactly to use the property for, the town could waste money and be mired in debate for years before it's able to put the property to good use.

Welltower is based in Toledo, Ohio, but has offices in California, Canada, New York and the UK.

Previously:

Brookline To Investigate Newbury College Site

Brookline Still Eyes Newbury College Property, Possible Deal

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).