Braintree Mayor Demands Progress On Peterson Pool By Month's End

BRAINTREE, MA — The developer for the Peterson Pool/Rink complex has until the end of the month to take significant steps towards resuming construction, Mayor Charles Kokoros said.

If developer E Street LLC doesn't make any progress by April 30, Kokoros said he will look for someone else to finish the job.

"There are no more excuses not to get this done," Kokoros told the Town Council Tuesday night. "Either get this done, or someone else will get this done."

Construction of the complex at Braintree High School started in January 2020, but the coronavirus pandemic put the project on hold. Then drainage problems were discovered on site, requiring a new drainage system to continue the project.

Despite the issues, Kokoros said he's committed to getting the complex done, and there's no room for further delays. He said the developer agreed to weekly meetings with town officials and meeting certain conditions by the end of the month. Those conditions include:

• Filing for a foundation permit
• Creating renderings of the complex, both the interior and exterior
• Submitting a construction schedule
• Showing proof of financing for the project

The Peterson Pool project has been 58 years in the making. Upon his death in 1963, tugboat Captain August Julius Petersen left Braintree $65,000 for a community pool at Watson Park. That $65,000 grew over the years into a fund of more than $2 million for a complex with an Olympic-size swimming pool and two ice rinks.

The project was supposed to be started in Fall 2018 after a groundbreaking ceremony was held, but little work was actually completed. The original developer, BSC Partners, failed to secure financing for the $20 million complex, town officials said. There was also a disagreement between town officials and the former developer over construction, which eventually grinded construction to a halt.