A long-quiet chunk of North Plymouth’s commercial strip may finally be getting a second act. A Boston developer is pitching a 184-unit senior living community for the long-vacant Benny’s Plaza on Court Street, a proposal that would turn the shuttered big-box store and its empty retail bays into housing and services for older residents. The idea has just landed in local planning discussions and could dramatically change one of the town’s most visible dead zones.
The project, led by HYM Investment Group, calls for 184 senior units at 179 Court St., according to reporting by the Boston Business Journal. The outlet reports that the former Benny’s store would be demolished or rebuilt and much of the plaza refashioned into senior housing with on-site support services.
A partnership of HYM and Denver-based NexCore Group is reported to have a deal in place to buy the plaza from the Carpionato Group, and longtime tenant Pioppi’s Liquors would stay put, according to the Plymouth Independent. The Benny’s chain closed all of its New England locations in 2017, leaving the Court Street property mostly idle in the years since, as reported by Boston.com.
Developer track record
This would not be HYM’s first attempt at turning an underused property into senior housing. The firm previously led the conversion of the former Newbury College campus into The Newbury of Brookline, a 159-unit senior community, according to the project page from HYM Investment Group. That Brookline development, which began welcoming residents in late 2024, is being pointed to as a test case for similar suburban adaptive reuse projects.
Neighbors remember earlier fights over housing
The Benny’s site has already seen its share of development drama. Earlier proposals included a 200 to 240 unit market-rate apartment complex, a plan that was ultimately pulled after vocal opposition from nearby residents, the Plymouth Independent reported. That history suggests any large project on the plaza will get a hard look from both town officials and neighbors, particularly on issues like traffic, building massing and how well it fits into the surrounding neighborhood.
What comes next
The senior living proposal is still in its early days and will need to clear local review and permitting before it can advance, according to the Boston Business Journal. With a purchase agreement reportedly in the works, the project is expected to surface at upcoming planning board or town meetings, where residents and officials will have their say on whether turning a long-idle plaza into senior housing is worth the added traffic and scale that come with it.
