GREENFIELD — With the necessary planning and zoning permits in hand, developers can move forward with plans to convert the former Greenfield Center School into market-rate apartments.

“This is a project both me and my brother are collaborating on,” said Greenfield resident David Zaccheo, referring to his brother Mark, who has completed several successful renovations locally, including turning the former Montague Center School into 22 apartments. “I think we’re both excited to work on a larger project together. … We’re really excited about bringing some additional energy to the neighborhood and some new housing options to the market.”

Zaccheo said the plan is to rehabilitate and convert the main school building on Montague City Road into 13 market-rate apartments, with a mix of studios and one-bedrooms, as well as a singular two-bedroom unit.

“The building has great bones, solid brick walls and high ceilings, and nice wood floors,” he said. “It has a lot of potential to be a great living space.”

The next phase of the project will involve obtaining building permits and reaching out to subcontractors. The hope, he said, is to start construction by early summer.

“The hope would be that the [apartments] are occupied by next September,” Zaccheo explained. “[In] August or late July, we’d be accepting applications.”

Zaccheo said that when he was considering buying the property, the building and the surrounding green space appealed to him and his brother.

“Down the street is where the Connecticut and Deerfield rivers merge,” he noted. “It’s got kind of a combination of being very close to town but also feeling really connected with nature, with the trails and rivers.”

Construction will primarily include interior renovations, with some exterior work on the windows and roof, he said. The building’s footprint will not be enlarged.

Zaccheo also previously presented plans to the Zoning Board of Appeals for the Marion Bliss Finer Building, also located on the property. Though details remain to be finalized, he intends to convert the building into office space.

The private school, which educates students in preschool through eighth grade, originally opened in 1981 near Foster’s Supermarket. It moved to the Montague City Road location in 1989.

Citing the need for more space for its students, the school began construction on a new, one-story building at 741 Bernardston Road and put its Montague City Road property up for sale. The Greenfield Center School moved into the new building in July 2021.

Reporter Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne.

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