New homes in Lexington have been getting bigger and bigger. A project on Wood Street is going the other way.
On Oct. 7, the Lexington Planning Board voted 5-0 to approve Seaver Properties LLC's plan for a Compact Neighborhood Development at 114 Wood Street. According to the board's written decision, the Woburn-based applicant plans six townhouse-style buildings with 15 three-bedroom ownership homes on a 7.48-acre lot.
Three of the buildings will have two units each, and three will have three units each. Every home gets a private garage, a deck and a driveway, plus access to shared open space.
Smaller homes, by design
The board's decision notes the new homes are much smaller than Lexington's average new home, which exceeded 6,000 square feet in 2022-2024. Under the town's rules, a Compact Neighborhood Development limits the average home to 2,250 square feet and any single home to 2,800 square feet. The Wood Street homes average 2,249 square feet, and the largest is 2,531, according to the decision. The homes range from about 1,750 square feet to just over 2,500.
The project shrank along the way. It started at 21 townhouses at a March 2025 review meeting, dropped to 19 in the December 2025 application and came down to 15 during the hearings.
Two of the homes, units 6 and 13, will be affordable forever to households earning no more than 80% of the area median income and will count on the town's Subsidized Housing Inventory. Each is 2,531 square feet, with three bedrooms, two and a half baths, a one-car garage, a covered front porch, a partial walkout basement and a deck. The board said family-sized affordable homes fill a need in Lexington. The developer must hire a certified lottery agent before the first building permit, and the lottery has to be held before the fifth market-rate home gets an occupancy permit.
The homes will be all-electric and solar-ready. Each garage gets a 240-volt, 50-amp EV charger outlet and outlets for e-bike charging. The plan calls for hybrid heat pumps with electric backup forced hot air, and the buildings will be designed to meet the Massachusetts Specialized Stretch Energy Code.
Site work and conditions
There's plenty of site work. The existing single-family house will be demolished. Stormwater will be handled by six underground infiltration systems fed by catch basins, drain grates, roof drains, deep sumps and oil separators. About half the property sits in a 250-foot-wide Eversource power line easement that will stay natural.
The plan removes 109 trees and plants 88 new ones, with more than 192 caliper inches of replacement, well above the 63 inches required.
Before any site work, the developer must do a Phase I archaeological survey, file a stormwater pollution prevention plan, put up tree protection and install erosion controls. The decision also bans trucks from standing or queuing on Wood Street and nearby streets, and requires an erosion control monitor with the authority to stop work.
The project isn't fully cleared yet. As of Oct. 7, the Conservation Commission had not granted an Order of Conditions, and its hearing was continued to Oct. 21. If the commission's approval changes the site plan, the developer will have to submit the changes and may need a modification.
The decision also requires the developer to give initial residents an annual Lexpress pass and information on the MBTA, the Rev Shuttle, Lexpress and the Minuteman Bikeway. The project is about 150 feet from an MBTA bus stop on the Route 76 line, and the developer agreed to add a bench there and a crosswalk on Wood Street, subject to Public Works approval.
Why it matters for Contractors
Fifteen townhouses on one lot is a nice-sized residential job, and it comes with a full site package: demolition, utilities, six underground infiltration systems, a new access drive, landscaping and tree work. The all-electric design and Specialized Stretch Energy Code mean electricians, HVAC contractors familiar with heat pumps, and crews who know high-performance envelopes will be in demand. The conditions are strict, with erosion control monitors, tree protection and no truck queuing on the street, so plan for that in your pricing. Seaver Properties is the applicant, and no builder or general contractor has been named publicly. With the Conservation Commission hearing set for Oct. 21, that's the next step before work can start.