#1 Story for 2016: Giant 52-story Tower to Rise at 5 Copley Place

Simon Property Group is preparing for construction of a 52-story tower at 5 Copley Place that would be one of the largest residential buildings in Boston. The project will create 542 residences, a 40,000 SF addition to the Neiman Marcus store, a glass-enclosed garden and 75,000 square feet of new retail and restaurant space at the corner of Dartmouth and Stuart streets.  The $500 million private investment will put 1,700 construction workers back on the job. 

Approximately 680,000 square feet of new residential space will be above the existing building, situated across from the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Back Bay Station.

The building’s 433 rental apartments and 109 condos will be housed in a slender 52-story tower designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects, and include 71 affordable housing units.

The plans call for a lap pool on the 6th floor, a 7th floor sky lobby and deck, garage parking spaces and secure bike storage.

At 569 feet, the skyscraper will be the second tallest residential building in Boston, behind the soon-to-be constructed, Four Seasons Tower.

The project will include a large 40,000 square-foot addition to the to the Neiman Marcus store, followed by a complete renovation of the existing 115,000-square-foot store - which will not close during construction.

It will also include additional space for smaller-scale retail shops and restaurants, with a “public winter garden” at the Stuart Street plaza. The developer has also committed up to $1 million towards new public art and $250,000 to Southwest Corridor Park.

The project will build on the strengths of the existing Copley Place complex at Stuart and Dartmouth Streets and infuse an already successful retail destination with an inspired and dynamic mixed-use development.

“The expansion of Neiman Marcus and Copley Place strengthens our retail destination in the Back Bay and contributes to the City’s economic vitality,” according to a press release. “The project will enhance the urban fabric of the neighborhood and be a striking addition to the city’s skyline.”

The project attracted controversy when state representatives accused the Governor of violating a 1997 agreement by signing a revised lease with the developer before city and state regulators could review its impacts on area residents.

Some neighbors have raised concerns, for example, that the project will add to the high winds and shadows thrown off by other skyscrapers in the area.

However, the developer has stressed that the tower would not significantly increase wind in the area, and would only cast minimal new shadows on surrounding open spaces.

It also said it has rotated the tower from its initial orientation on the site and made several other design changes “to minimize environmental impacts, provide improvements to the public realm, and greatly enhance the overall pedestrian experience.”

Built by Chicago-based Urban Investment and Development, Copley Place was at the time the largest mixed-use project in the country. It was criticized by neighbors and some public officials for the way its hulking buildings towered over town houses in the South End.

The original $500 million project eventually included the Westin and Marriott hotels, four office buildings, a shopping mall, 100 apartments, and a 1,400-space parking garage.

The existing building at Copley Place consists of parking, three levels of retail and seven floors of office space.

The new design will transform the brick-paved plaza entrance to Neiman Marcus into a multi-story atrium with a glass facade

The new tower would fill out the last undeveloped parcels in Copley Place, which was initially built in the 1980s over the Massachusetts Turnpike roadway and ramps, and on a former railroad yard.

Simon initially proposed the project in June 2008, but put it on hold when the recession dried up funding for big projects.

The company resurrected the project last year and plans to begin work on the project ground early this summer. Construction is expected to last 3 years.

  

#2 Story for 2016: Big Plans to Construct Boston's Third Tallest Tower

A developer has plans to build one of Boston’s tallest buildings in downtown’s Financial District. The 740-foot glass tower will include a 300-room hotel, offices, retail space, a restaurant and 150 luxury condominium units.  Costing as much as $900 million to build, the 900,000-SF skyscraper will add a new showpiece to Boston’s rapidly changing skyline.

The building would be the tallest building in the downtown area and will include a 300-room hotel, retail space, offices, and up to 150 condominiums on the upper floors.

The tower proposal comes during one of the most dynamic periods of construction in the city’s history, as numerous skyscrapers aim to alter the Boston skyline.

At 740 feet, the angular skyscraper would be Boston’s third-tallest structure, behind the 750-foot Prudential building and the 790-foot John Hancock Tower.

An office building at 133 Federal Street would be combined with the new tower at ground level to create a 72,000-square-foot lobby with restaurants and shops.

The complex, called 111 Federal Street will rise on one of the Financial District’s last major development sites, replacing the city-owned Winthrop Square parking garage presently on the site.

Before work can proceed, developer Steve Belkin must negotiate a deal to buy the property from the city.

The dilapidated garage at 111-115 Federal Street will be demolished and replaced with glass storefronts and modern lobbies for the offices and a luxury hotel.

Former Mayor Thomas Menino selected Steve Belkin to redevelop the property in 2006, but the project failed to attract enough tenants amid the economic downturn.

The original plan called for a 1,000-foot office tower, but that proposal was rejected because it would have interfered with air traffic. The new proposal calls for a tower 260 feet shorter.

The building will be one of only a few towers built in the densely packed Financial District since the 1980s. In recent years, tech companies, restaurants and retailers have brought new life to the area.

The project, designed by Boston-based CBT Architects, is expected to begin construction sometime late this year.

#3 Story for 2016: Gigantic Fenway Center Project to Begin in Spring

Fenway Center, one of the largest stalled projects in Boston, will be ready to start construction in the spring of 2017.  The five-building, 1,300,000-square-foot mega project has secured financing for the project’s two-building first phase, which would include 313 residential units. The project has an estimated price tag of $700 million.

The 1.3 million-square-foot complex will be developed over air rights which span eight lanes of the Massachusetts Turnpike. 

The finished project will include 550 apartments and commercial space in five buildings between Brookline Avenue and Beacon Street; 1,290 parking spots, open space, and streetscape improvements. 

Plans also call for a farmers market and a bike-sharing station.

Fenway Center will be among the most transformative development projects in Boston.

Boston regulators approved a $4.6 million tax break to spur construction of a new neighborhood near Fenway Park that would straddle the Massachusetts Turnpike and include hundreds of apartments, stores, restaurants, and offices. 

The tax deal for the $550 million Fenway Center development, negotiated by Mayor Walsh, received unanimous support from the board of the Boston Redevelopment Authority. The tax break will provide an important stimulus to a project that promises to create 1,800 construction jobs and boost economic growth.

The Boston Redevelopment Authority voted to petition the City Council for approval of a Special Tax Assessment Agreement between the City of Boston and MK Parcel 7 Development, LLC, the developer of the Fenway Center project.

The project has languished for years due to legal and permitting challenges, and the developer has struggled to generate enough funding to move forward.

The development was approved by the BRA Board in 2011, but has been delayed due to litigation and rising costs.

Fenway Center is particularly costly and complex because it requires construction of a $45 million deck over the Mass Pike to support its main parking garage and a 27-story tower with offices, apartments and stores.

The project would be the first development to be constructed on air rights over the turnpike since Copley Place was built in the 1980s.

“We are going to cover up the highway and build a new neighborhood out of thin air,” said John Rosenthal, president of developer Meredith Management Corp.

Fenway Center will combine:

•     Fully funded, energy neutral MBTA Yawkey Commuter Rail Station
•     1,290 Parking Spaces including 750 shared-use spaces
•     500 Residential Apartments including 10% on-site affordable units and 5% offsite
•     170,000 SF of Office Space
•     Over 90,000 SF of Retail Space
•     Over 30,000 SF of Parks and Green Spaces
•     Bicycle Storage and a Bicycle Share Station
•     Community Space
•     Daycare Center

The tax relief is structured to help fund construction of the project’s retail spaces, not its apartments. The deal will reduce the project’s taxes over a six-year period during its construction and early years of operation.

After its completion, Fenway Center is expected to generate about $5 million a year in taxes. The developer would also pay the state $226 million to lease the 4.5-acre development site over 99 years.

Currently, the property generates about $152,000 a year.

Click images to enlarge

  

#4 Story for 2016: 31-Story Hotel-Condo Tower to Rise near Copley Square

For the last few years, developers have been working with the city to construct a midsized high-rise building in Back Bay near Copley Square. After several delays, construction is finally about to break ground on 40 Trinity Place.

40 Trinity Place will be a 31-story tower with a four-star hotel on the lower floors and luxury condominium units on the upper floors. 

The 429,000 square foot building will rise 393 feet tall at the southeast corner of the intersection of Stuart Street and Trinity Place.

The new tower will have 154 hotel rooms, 146 residential units, a celebrity chef restaurant, a sky lobby and bar, a two-story public outdoor patio and high rise conference center, and ground floor retail and restaurant space.

Amenities for those who live in the residential portion will be located on the 17th and 18th floors and include concierge service, valet parking, a movie theater and a spa.

The highlight of the building will be a two-story sky lobby and bar, which will be set on the 15th floor.

The developers are planning on having a celebrity chef operate the restaurant and people from all over Boston will be able to come and view the city below from 150 feet in the sky.

The restaurant will also feature an outdoor patio, which when completed, will become the highest rooftop bar in the city.

40 Trinity will be built adjacent to the existing Boston Common Hotel, with an 11,300 square foot expansion for the hotel's University Club located on the building's third floor.

The ground floor of the building will open up retail space allowing for more business in the neighborhood.

Previously proposed on-site affordable housing units have been eliminated; instead, 39 affordable housing units would be built off site.

A total of 17 on-site affordable units were previously proposed.

The look of the building has been designed to minimize visual impact on the Boston skyline.

The design is particularly sensitive to context as the building is within close proximity to Copley Square and adjacent to the iconic Hancock Tower. The building exterior is sculpturally distinctive, explicitly designed to distinguish it from the adjacent buildings.

Many architects have praised its sculpture-like design.

According to the architectural team that designed the building, it was “explicitly designed to distinguish itself from adjacent buildings” nearby. They also pointed out that “shadow and wind impacts on the surrounding area were carefully considered”.

40 Trinity will have a boutique and elegant feel unlike some of the larger buildings going up around Boston which consist of 200 or more units such as Millennium Tower, the New Four Seasons and Pier 4.

The hotel portion of the tower is being designed by Stonehill Taylor Architects of New York City.

40 Trinity is set to break ground in early 2017 and will be built by Suffolk Construction. The project will create approximately 700 construction jobs as well as approximately 350 permanent jobs.

The building is designed to meet LEED Silver certification, incorporating a number of sustainable design features to preserve and protect the local environment.