The Historic “Worcester House”/Andover Street Property in Transition

About eighteen months ago I wrote about a special permit request on the docket for the Lowell Planning Board for the property at 658 Andover Street – the historic-minded would know it as the Worcester House. The plan to put at least 5 homes and possibly a “road” into the property stirred the neighbors, a meeting was held and the developer re-thought his plan. A scaled-down version for the plot was devised with a commitment to save the historic house on the same foot print and the addition of two-three new homes. The barn couldn’t be saved and was razed. Driving by today, it was apparent that after many months, full site preparation is underway. Trees have been felled. Heavy equipment is on-site . Work is underway to reclaim the Federal style farmhouse built c. 1802.  The Worcester House – the oldest house on Andover Street – is on the National Register of Historic Places. It is also part of the Andover Street Historic District. The location and historic nature of the property will keep us tuned-in to the project as it progresses.

This photo of the Worcester House is from the City of Lowell Assessor’s web-site. It looks quite different today.