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design a building that would go in the
neighborhood."
Despite the lengthy process, Groom,
who attended the Greenwood Avenue
school when it was the town's high
school, said he stuck with the project
because "somebody had to do it."
"If it wasn't going to be me, it was
going to be somebody else," Groom
said. "I think our goal is to build a really
nice product that at the end of the day,
everybody — the town and the people
who live there and us, of course — will
be proud of."
The condominiums will be priced
starting in the $600,000 range and will
be a mix of two- and three-bedroom
units. There will be 60 parking spaces,
with some in garages.
Construction of the new building
is expected to be completed by the
summer or fall of 2019. Town officials
estimate the project will generate at
least $325,000 annually in real estate tax
revenue.
Demolition of the 1894 school marked
the loss of a piece of the town's history.
The former building served as the town's
first high school and was originally named
the Phillips School before becoming
Swampscott High School.
The building was such a long-time
fixture on top of Greenwood Avenue that
construction crews unearthed a 124-yearold
time capsule during the demolition
process. The capsule was buried on
April 28, 1894, the day the school was
dedicated.
The original school building was
designed and built in the Romanesque
style at a cost of $45,000 on land
donated to the town by the Phillips
family. It was situated at the top of
Greenwood Avenue with sweeping
views of the ocean and town. The only
structure located at the top of the hill
at the time, it could be seen from miles
away, according to Planning Board
chairwoman Angela Ippolito.
"The Greenwood (Avenue) school
was a property that generations of
Swampscott families have been endeared
to and it's going to be terrific to see that
property come back to some productive
use," said Town Administrator Sean
Fitzgerald. "At this point, we've been
able to resolve some long-standing issues
and we're advancing a redevelopment of
one of the most extraordinary locations
in Swampscott."