The Select Board voted 3-2 Tuesday to oppose residential development at the Hawthorne property, a move that could exclude housing from the site’s long-term request for proposals (RFP).

“The value of that parcel of land really lends itself to some great possibilities, and I do believe in my mind that we will get responses to that RFP that do not include residential,” Vice Chair Danielle Leonard said. “I believe it is doable.”

Residential development at the former Hawthorne-by-the-Sea site has long been a point of contention, with many residents arguing that a prime oceanfront property should remain accessible to the broader community rather than be occupied by a limited number of private residences. Select Board Members Mary Ellen Fletcher and Wayne Spritz as well as Leonard voted in favor of removing residential development possibilities from the long-term RFP. Select Board Member Ted Dooley and Chair Katie Phelan voted against the motion. 

Town Meeting Members voted in December to allow the Select Board to lease the former Hawthorne-by-the-Sea restaurant for up to 30 months “to limit carrying costs and protect a key community asset while long-term planning continues.” The Swampscott Center for Performing Arts’ entertainment, common victualler and liquor licenses were recently approved by the Select Board. The center has the space until the end of June 2028.

For the past month, the Select Board has been refining the long-term RFP, weighing issues including parking, open space and residential use. Town staff will now work on drafting the RFP, which Phelan suggested the Select Board will review in at least two meetings.

A number of public comments at the beginning of the Select Board meeting encouraged the board to not allow residential spaces at the new Hawthorne development.

“At the last meeting there was a lot of discussion about residential, whether to have it, whether not to have it. I think most of the members of the board had stated that they prefer not to have it, but there was discussion to potentially leave it open to the developer,” Resident Paula Cleridge said. “I don’t think we should try to guess what the developer would need, but if we would prefer not to have residential, put out the RFP to say ‘we would prefer not to have residential’ and then leave the decision of what to include or not include for the developer to make it profitable for them, up to them, but just let them know that residential is something we would not prefer.”

Resident Jim Olivetti, a member of the Tree Committee, also added that the town purchased the property to benefit all of Swampscott, not just “the wealthy few who would purchase or lease luxury condos on this site.”

“We have lots and lots of residential property that has been purchased and turned into residences in this town. This was not for that,” said resident Victoria Kelleher, who is also on the Open Space Committee. “This was for the townspeople to be able to enjoy themselves in this town by the beachside.”

Several residents also pushed for the issue to return to Town Meeting to gather public comment and consensus. 

“We are doing the very best to take all the information available to us and come to a conclusion,” Phelan said at Tuesday’s meeting, noting that the board’s agendas list what will be discussed on the Hawthorne topic.

Leonard added that the town has come to a point where a plan needs to be decided.

“We have to take a stand. We cannot let this go on to infinity, where we debate. We’re always going to have people with different opinions. We have to put some guardrails,” Leonard said. “Sometimes the right thing to do is not always maybe the most logical or the most profitable. But people have spoken about it enough to me that I think it’s one of things we should really consider doing tonight.”

Dooley said he did not support residential development at the site, but he did argue against prohibiting it in the RFP outright. Dooley suggested that a small commercial development would not be fully financially viable for a developer. 

Dooley pointed to similarly sized towns – like Wickford and Narragansett in Rhode Island as well as Waterford, Connecticut – who had RFPs that “came back with zero responses because they have all demanded a high use of public access, no investment from the public and they have not allowed for enough of a revenue generation for landholder or the developer to make the RFP work.”

“I don’t want to get a handful of less than stellar ideas because of our limitations,” Phelan said, adding that she had argued at Town Meeting against residential space and that she recognizes the public’s opinion but that sometimes “you see a picture of an idea and that sparks a change of heart.”

What’s Going On With The Property?

At a Special Town Meeting in June 2022, voters overwhelmingly approved acquiring several properties, including the Hawthorne parcel and the Archer Street project. The article authorized the Select Board to acquire 149–169 Humphrey Street by gift, purchase, or eminent domain for municipal use, passing 214–3.

A community brainstorming session in January 2023 identified public community space as the top priority, with strong support for open space and green areas. Multi-use space ranked second, while “iconic” concepts were dominated by open-space ideas.

A town survey presented at the April 3, 2024 Select Board meeting found that residents viewed a public park and open space as the most important use of the property. Waterfront access was considered important, while revenue generation was less important and off-street public parking “not important.”

A preliminary design for a glass-encased Swampscott Public Library was unveiled in April 2024. The initial estimated cost of the preliminary design was around $30 million, according to what former Select Board Member Peter Spellios said at the time.

The plan was met with strong opposition from residents, many of whom said at the time that they felt blindsided by the proposal, and the plan was considered a dead end after a public forum in May 2024.

The Select Board created the Hawthorne Re-Use Advisory Committee in February 2025 to develop guidelines and gather community feedback before making recommendations.

At two community meetings, residents emphasized creating “a place to go,” prioritizing pedestrians, and addressing the short lifespans of businesses on Humphrey Street. Other ideas included community spaces for food courts, cafés, artisans, and events.

The committee recently agreed to present Plan G1 to the Select Board. The plan features two rows of buildings, totaling around 25,000 square feet if two stories, set perpendicular to the road with a 40-foot opening to maintain views into the courtyard and open-space area. The model includes roughly 28 parking spaces.

A few weeks prior to the Hawthorne Re-Use Advisory Committee’s presentation, Town Administrator Nick Connors informed the Select Board on November 6 that he had learned of the Athanas family’s decision to vacate on October 23, discovering that some of their personal items were being auctioned that same weekend. The Athanases said the property was sold three years ago and that they are “ready to move on” as the town advances its plans.

This in turn led to the Town Meeting discussion. Article No. 10 authorized the Select Board to issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) during the interim planning period.

“Article No. 10 gives us the time and flexibility to keep this landmark protected, active and productive while we finish that work together,” Connors said, adding that by keeping the Hawthorne restaurant open it allows for a “dual-track” approach through  short-term activation and long-term redevelopment. “It’s both fiscally responsible and community driven, ensuring that we generate value rather than costs while we continue forward with this plan.”

Select Board Chair Katie Phelan emphasized that the short-term solution is not a replacement for long-term planning but is meant to “run tandem.”

The Swampscott Center for Performing Arts was awarded the RFP, and the Select Board has now agreed to liquor, entertainment and victualler licenses for the center. 

Meanwhile, the town is also exploring the potential purchase of the adjacent St. John’s Church parking lot, which officials say could “unlock the full potential of the site” by enabling a balanced plan that includes green space, parking, and revenue-generating redevelopment.