Planning Board OKs Re-Petition for Wonderland Tower

Planning Board · Meeting of August 25, 2026

Revere Planning Board voted 5-0 to let a developer re-petition for a scaled-down Wonderland Ballroom site tower. The board found that cutting the proposed building from 17 to 16 stories, 182 to 170 feet, and 358 to 334 units, a 9.43 percent reduction, was a material change allowing 1290 North Shore Road, LLC to return to the Zoning Board of Appeals. Attorney James Simpletta said the prior ZBA denial "wasn't the height, it wasn't the use, it wasn't the number of apartments," but objected to the extra story.

Member Hector Rivera pressed for a traffic study near the under-construction high school and asked, "Have you guys done a traffic study at all?" Carpenters Union representative Cesar Rijo urged local hiring, saying the project "is going to design the skyline for this city for the future." The board's motion, moved by Hal Abrams and seconded by Craig Costanza, conditioned approval on added detail about soundproofing, parking, trash pickup, mixed-use status and the project's 7 percent affordable units.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 1,980 words

Source: the Planning Board meeting of August 25, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.