Urbanist Development

06/11/2026

Join us on quick walk-through of Wright's Block in downtown Holyoke with Vadim and Bill from the Urbanist Team!

It's exciting to see this historic building continue to come back to life as construction progresses. Wright's Block will bring new apartments and storefront space to the heart of downtown, helping add more housing and activity to High Street.

A big thank you to the team at First Peak Construction for their hard work and partnership in bringing this project to reality.

More updates to come as we move closer to completion.

05/05/2026

This past Monday was International Firefighters’ Day ❤️🚒

A few weeks ago, we experienced a fire at one of our Newton Street properties. We are incredibly thankful that everyone made it out safely 🙏, but heartbroken over the loss of residents’ homes and damage to a townhouse we had recently renovated that was soon going to become someone’s new home 🏡💔

At Urbanist Development, we got into historic preservation because we believe in fighting blight, restoring old buildings, and giving them a second life 🧱✨. Seeing one of these structures damaged by fire is difficult for all involved.

One thing this experience reinforced is how important life safety investments are in older buildings. In many of our projects, that means installing sprinkler systems, new fire separations, upgraded alarms, and other modern safety improvements to help protect both people and historic structures 🚨🧯

Today we especially want to thank the firefighters who responded and all firefighters who put themselves on the line every day for their communities 👨‍🚒👩‍🚒❤️ We are deeply grateful for the hard, dangerous, and often underappreciated work you do.

05/05/2026

05/05/2026

Wright’s Block, coming back to life on High Street🙌

Every detail matters—from the proportions of each opening to the way the façade reads from the street. This is what thoughtful restoration looks like 🪟🧱

Built in partnership with First Peak Construction 🚧 🏗️

05/05/2026

Preservation meets performance.
Thanks for the First Peak Team for transforming Wright’s Block to its original character on High Street!

03/13/2026

We’ve officially closed on Taber & Bishop 🏛️✨

These two Renaissance Revival buildings from 1884 and 1890 include 24 office suites, a restaurant, and an art gallery storefront, and are already home to a great mix of tenants 🏢🎨🍽️

We’re also planning to transform the 4th floor into Urbanist Development’s new penthouse office suite- our future home base 👀

Excited to continue investing in historic downtown buildings and the communities around them 💚

03/10/2026

Great progress at Wright’s Block. Framing is underway and the apartments are beginning to take shape. Appreciate the strong work from First Peak Construction and their team on site
Construction 🏗️ 🚧

02/19/2026

🚧 Progress at Wrights Block 🚧

Behind the historic façade, real transformation is happening.

We’re deep into new interior framing for 19 apartments —
⚒️ Walls going up
🔌 New electrical systems being installed
🚿 Plumbing rough-ins underway

Every line matters.

We’re paying careful attention to ceiling heights, transitions between spaces, and how these new layouts fit within the existing historic structure. Balancing modern systems with a 150+ year old building takes precision — and a lot of coordination.

It’s not glamorous yet — but this is the stage where quality is built.

More to come as Wrights Block continues to take shape. 🏗️

02/13/2026

Urbanist Development just completed a full electrical modernization of 24 occupied apartments.

We replaced old fuse panels and knob-and-tube wiring with new service gear, upgraded capacity with a new transformer, and fully electrified the building — eliminating gas parlor stoves.

This was all done while residents remained in place.

Not flashy work. But meaningful work.
Safer systems. Cleaner energy. Historic buildings ready for the next 100 years.

Shoutout to Corey Chenevert and his team!

01/27/2026

Thanks to MassLive for a nice write up on the redevelopment efforts occurring in the Downtown to bring a total of 54 new apartments online over several different buildings on High & Maple Streets.

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A 16‑unit apartment building is being renovated by Urbanist Development, one of several projects expected to add more than 50 housing units to the city.