Citizens for Affordable Housing in Newton Development Organization (CAN-DO) has proposed to re-develop 424-432 Cherry St into 9 residential units for chronically homeless individuals and families. This 14,000 sq/ft property, located at the corner of Cherry & Webster, is currently being used as offices for a financial management business. CAN-DO’s $6 million re-development proposal would not alter the exterior (historically significant) but basically gut the interior add 3 residential units in the back of the property.
The application/hearing/decision process with the City is going to play out over the next 6 months. For more information, please find the full proposal here:
RandlettPark.com 
I have to say I’m a little concerned about the proposal as well. Perhaps I’m not well-versed in the terminology but “chronic homelessness” suggests some serious issues to me. Placing a facility like this in a small, densely populated area like West Newton doesn’t seem like the best idea. Very interested to see how this plays out. I think it’s going to be a heated discussion.
I believe that Newton can and should help support homeless families. Further, the City hasn’t and shouldn’t discriminate against housing those with mental illness getting treatment and recovering addicts. At the same time, Newton has the right and obligation to protect the public safety of residents from the violent and dangerous criminal behavior of some of those with such conditions. I understand that the earlier project in Waban failed to do that giving Pine Street Inn full discretion to choose its “chronically homeless” tenants under lax criteria for those with dangerous criminal histories. If the City was to approve a project to move a dozen “chronically homeless” individuals into West Newton, the City should require clear and strict mandatory disqualification rules to bar sexual offenders and those with histories of violent and dangerous crimes such as murder, rape, sexual assault of a minor or child, kidnapping, robbery, burglary, assault and battery, drug trafficking, and breaking and entering into residences or automobiles.