News & Updates

BRA board approves one million square feet of new development

Jul 15, 2016

The board of directors for the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) approved six new development projects totaling just over one million square feet at its July meeting last night. Four of the six projects are residential, including a large apartment building on the South Boston Waterfront and more modest housing proposals in Dorchester, East Boston, and Beacon Hill. Major projects associated with Northeastern University and Boston College, which will construct new student housing and a new recreation center, respectively, were also approved.

The projects represent a combined investment of $594 million and are expected to generate over 860 construction jobs.

Below is a summary of the development projects that were approved.

Northeastern University, private developer partner on Columbus Avenue dorm project

Total Project Cost: $160,000,000
Total SF: 320,000
Construction Jobs: 270

Northeastern University will move ahead with student housing that was contemplated in the school’s 2013 Institutional Master Plan. In conjunction with the Northeastern Community Task Force and the BRA, the university has been working to increase the supply of on-campus housing for students to help alleviate pressures on the traditional neighborhood housing stock. Partnering with American Campus Communities, Northeastern will develop an 812-bed apartment building for students with ground floor commercial space.

The building will contain a total of 221 apartment units, consisting of two- and four-bedroom apartments with both shared and private accommodations. Students helped inform the size and mix of units through an online market survey. A range of amenities, including a social lounge, recreation and gaming area, and fitness center, will be available to residents.

Designed by CUBE 3 Studio in collaboration with Elkus Manfredi Architects, the Columbus Avenue Student Housing Project will be constructed on what is currently a surface parking lot at the corner of Burke Street and Columbus Avenue. The project will vary in height, from eight stories along Columbus Avenue to 21 stories on the eastern side of the parcel and 16 stories on the western portion. Construction is expected to begin before the end of this year and last approximately two and a half years.

Next phase of Waterside Place set to move forward in Seaport

Total Project Cost: $157,000,000
Total SF: 325,000
Construction Jobs: 310

Developer John Drew received approval for the next phase of The Drew Company’s Waterside Place development on the South Boston Waterfront, a project that was originally conceived in 2007 and has since been revised several times due to changing economic conditions. Waterside Place – Phase 1B will create 307 rental apartments in a 23-story building adjacent to the existing Waterside Place, which opened in early 2014. Phase 1B will have apartments that range from studio to three-bedroom units, 62 of which will be “innovation units,” smaller dwellings that benefit from the building’s communal amenities. There will also be 3,500 square feet of retail space.

15 on-site deed restricted affordable units will rent for between $1,065 and approximately $1,600 per month. The balance of the developer’s affordable housing obligation will be satisfied by a $5.7 million payment to the city’s Inclusionary Development Policy Fund.

Located on Massport property, Waterside Place is well served by public transportation, including the MBTA’s World Trade Center Silver Line stop next door, several buses, and nearby South Station. Drew hopes to begin construction in the first quarter of 2017 and complete the project in early 2019.

New Boston College recreation center slated for Brighton campus

Total Project Cost: $95,000,000
Total SF: 215,000
Construction Jobs: 146

As Boston College prepares to open two new dormitories along Commonwealth Avenue this fall, the transformation of its campus in Brighton will take another step forward, as the BRA board approved plans for a new recreation center last night. Edmonds Hall, a 790-bed residence hall will be demolished to make way for the new facility, but the college will actually benefit from a net increase of 240 student beds as a result of the new dormitories opening. All of these projects were envisioned in Boston College’s 2009 Institutional Master Plan and have been vetted with the Allston Brighton Boston College Community Task Force.

The 215,000 square foot recreation center, designed with a modernized Gothic look and feel that complements the existing campus architecture, will house a variety of physical activity and support spaces for basic recreation, intramural, club, and varsity sports programs. Plans call for six multi-purpose courts, indoor lap and recreational swimming pools, three indoor tennis courts, squash and racquetball courts, weights and general fitness space, and administrative offices. The new center will replace the existing Flynn Recreation Complex, which was built in 1972.

Former Suffolk University building to be converted into condominiums

Total Project Cost: $162,000,000
Total SF: 119,000
Construction Jobs: 89

A building just steps away from the Massachusetts State House that used to contain classroom, administrative, theater, and dining space for Suffolk University will be renovated and converted into housing in Beacon Hill. Developers acquired the Archer and Donahue buildings from the university last July and plan to create a full-service, 71-unit condominium building with one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom units. While there will be a penthouse level constructed at the top of the building, the maximum height will not exceed that of the existing structure, a design change from the original proposal that the community worked with the developer to achieve.

The project at 33-61 Temple Street will have just over 5,700 square feet of amenity space for residents, which could include a fitness room, lounge, or family recreation space, though plans for this component have yet to be finalized. An underground garage with up to 54 parking spaces will be serviced by a professional valet and include a vehicle elevator. Covered storage for up to 75 bicycles will also be available to residents.

64-unit apartment building near Dorchester’s Ashmont Station approved

Total Project Cost: $14,000,000
Total SF: 48,200
Construction Jobs: 36

The site of the former Odwin Learning Center near Dorchester’s Peabody Square and Ashmont Station will be redeveloped with 64 new units of housing. The project, located at 1943 Dorchester Avenue, will include just over 2,100 square feet of ground-floor commercial space that could serve as a satellite clinical facility for the Codman Square Health Center. In addition to a multi-purpose room and an outdoor terrace, the building will have 24 vehicle parking spaces and covered storage for at least 22 bicycles. Residents will enjoy convenient access to the MBTA’s Red Line and multiple bus lines with service to downtown.

The majority of apartments in the project, 42 in total, will be studios, while 15 units will be one-bedrooms, three will be one-bedrooms with dens, and four will be two-bedroom units. Eight of the 64 units will be restricted as affordable, with rents ranging from approximately $1,065 to $1,400 per month. Peregrine Urban Initiative LLC, the developer of the project, plans to begin construction in 2017.

More housing coming to East Boston’s Maverick Square

Total Project Cost: $6,000,000
Total SF: 22,200
Construction Jobs: 16

Developer Matthew Newman received approval to construct a 20-unit condominium building that will transform a site at 202 Maverick Street in East Boston that is currently occupied by several smaller structures, including a garage and a multi-family house. The new building, which is just a third of a mile away from the Maverick Square MBTA Blue Line station, will feature two penthouses and underground parking for 20 vehicles. Three of the building’s units will be deed restricted as affordable in compliance with the city’s Inclusionary Development Policy.

The development is being marketed as the Maverick Shipyard Apartments.

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