Zom Living's original proposal included 495 apartments at South Shore Plaza in Braintree. Image courtesy of Zom Living

A multifamily developer dropped plans for housing at Braintree’s South Shore Plaza amid political and neighborhood opposition.

ZOM Living ended a seven-month attempt to gain support for zoning changes that would have cleared the way for the Residences at Granite Crossing development.

The Braintree Planning Board voted down a planned unit development zoning district required for the project on Aug. 8.

“ZOM sought out and incorporated feedback from the community to create a vision for a world-class residential development in Braintree,” ZOM Managing Director Jim Dunlop said in a statement. “ZOM heard frequently throughout this process that this location is ideal for such a development. ZOM is confident in the value that this project would provide to the Braintree community beyond tax revenue and is disappointed that some chose to overlook those benefits due to predispositions against multifamily development.”

The Orlando, Florida developer originally proposed 495 apartments at the southern end of the 1.6 million-square-foot mall’s parking lot, including 180 age-restricted units for seniors. The project was the company’s first proposal in Massachusetts, comprising a pair of 5-story buildings.

A neighborhood group immediately launched an opposition campaign after ZOM went public with its plans in January, however, objecting to additional traffic and potential increases in public school enrollment.

ZOM Living submitted scaled-down plans for 390 apartments in March, and eventually submitted a final plan for 290 units.

ZOM had agreed to buy the property from mall owner Simon Property Group following final approvals.

Developers including the Hanover Co. and AvalonBay Communities have successfully received approval for apartment complexes on underutilized sections of retail properties including the Hanover Mall and Woburn Village.