Restaurant group moves forward on plan for Tavern

Brian Piccini, CEO of Boston Urban Hospitality, the company behind The Woods restaurant slated for the Josiah Smith Tavern, told the Weston Select Board on Nov. 25 that his team has received preliminary approvals on several aspects of the project from Historic New England, allowing them to move ahead on completing construction documents.

“This is going to bring The Woods to life,” Piccini said. “The next phase of work, which includes intensive efforts by the design team and coordination among my consultants, is expected to continue through February.”

He added that the schedule will continue to change as plans develop.

Piccini has been an official part of the search for a restaurateur for the Josiah Smith Tavern since 2023, when his bid for the space was accepted. The question of what to do with the tavern has been a topic of discussion for Weston for almost 20 years. A restaurant was proposed in 2009, but restoration funds were voted down that year. The current reuse plan was proposed in 2016.

The Select Board and the Planning Board requested construction documents from Piccini, but he held off, saying if his proposals were not approved, redoing the documents would cost additional time and money.

“I tried to take the strategy of checking the big items of concern so the town and Historic New England aren’t surprised,” he told the Observer.

According to Piccini, he and his team have been able to plan the seating and bar area, but have not been able to design where refrigeration would go until Historic New England confirmed that they would likely approve the installation of an air handler outside the building.

In a November email to Town Manager Leon Gaumond and the Friends of the Josiah Smith Tavern, Historic New England confirmed they had approved several changes to the tavern, including ‘mechanical changes, such as the installation of exhaust vents’ and ‘construction of an addition and associated loading dock.’

It also stated the organization is prepared to approve the position of a makeup air unit and changes to the windows at the rear of the barn.

“Now that we know what area we have to work with, we can really start filling it with important systems,” Piccini said.

Leslie Glynn, chair of the Planning Board, told the Observer the planning process for The Woods has not followed the usual order of things.

“For them to come to us without construction documents is like, ‘close your eyes and imagine what it looks like,’” she said. “I’m very happy to hear Brian is continuing with construction documents because that’s where you find out if the vision you have can actually be built … I think we have moved past the roadblock.”

Piccini said that he hopes to have construction documents ready by February. Once necessary approvals are in place, he estimates construction will take about six months. He is targeting fall 2026 for opening.

“I’m working as diligently and as fast as I can and learning the process of the town,” Piccini said.