$75M Mixed-Use Development Planned for Dorchester

The construction boom that is transforming Boston’s skyline and restructuring neighborhoods like South Boston is now rolling into Dorchester. The latest development is DotBlock, a $75 million mix of condos, apartments, shops and restaurants by Atlas Investment Group that would rise on what is now a 3 1/2-acre patch of run-down warehouses and industrial buildings on Dorchester Avenue.

The phased development would include up to 259 units of for-rent and for-sale housing, a 20,000-square-foot landscaped roof deck, a 400-space central parking garage and 40,000 square feet of retail at 1207 Dorchester Avenue, near the Savin Hill Station.

The 3.5-acre project site stretches almost a full city block and is roughly bounded by Dorchester Avenue, and  Greenmount and Hancock streets. Existing properties on the site include a mix of underutilized industrial buildings, including single-story warehouses.

The condos, totaling 64 in all, will be priced at around $400,000 in a bid to appeal to those middle-class buyers priced out of Boston amid an explosion of luxury housing. The two-bedroom, two-bath units will have 1,150 square feet of space.

Three apartment buildings are planned as well, with units averaging about 950 square feet a piece.

A five-story apartment building with 50 units is planned for DotBlock’s first phase. The second phase includes a pair of six-story buildings totaling 145 more units.

A total of 40,000 square feet of neighborhood style retail is planned for the ground floor of the two six-story buildings, with a mix of coffee shops, restaurants and a grocery store.

Demetrios Dasco of Atlas Investment Group LLC is spearheading the project's development, and RODE Architects is handling design work.

The DotBlock plan follows on the heels of a proposal by development giant Edens to expand the South Bay shopping center in Dorchester.

That plan calls for 500 apartments, a 65,000-square-foot cinema, 115,000 square feet of shops and restaurants, and a 150 to 200-room hotel.

The developer hopes to nail down all the necessary permits over the next few months, clear the site by the summer, and begin construction in the fall.
  

Massive 3-Tower Project Set to Rise at Boston Garden

A 1.87-million-square-foot, mixed-use project, with a price tag estimated at $950 million, will soon begin to rise over Causeway Street and the Zakim Bridge. The Boston Garden Towers will be constructed on a 2.8-acre parking lot located next to TD Garden, where the old Boston Garden once stood. The three tower project would connect 497 residential units, 668,000 square feet of office space and 235,000 square feet of retail to the sports venue and North Station.

The massive development located at 80 Causeway Street will dramatically alter the face of the TD Garden.

The new complex, designed by architect Elkus Manfredi, will rise over Causeway Street in three new towers: two of them 20 stories high and one 45-story tower reaching 600 feet, built above a three- to five-story retail base.

A modern glass atrium will connect to a new entrance into TD Garden and to the MBTA's North Station.

Below ground, a four-level parking garage will be constructed to accommodate about 800 vehicles.

“We are creating a new front door to North Station, a new portal to the city,” said David Manfredi, of Elkus Manfredi Architects.

“We don’t want to create a mall; we don’t want to create privatized space. We want to create space that is inviting to the public.”

The $950 million development will include:

•     40,000 square foot expansion of TD Garden
•     560,000 square feet of residential with 497 units
•     200,000 square foot hotel with 306 rooms
•     668,000 square feet of office space
•     142,000 square feet of flexible office space
•     235,000 square feet of retail/restaurant space
•     25,000 square foot glass atrium hall

Prior to leaving office, Mayor Menino had agreed to provide $7.8 million in tax breaks to help the developers lure the Star Market and build the underground parking spaces for the TD Garden.

The tax agreement will spread the relief over 15 years.

During that same period, the development is expected to produce $32.2 million in new tax revenue for the city.

Developer Boston Properties said the tax agreement was crucial to attracting a supermarket to the property and asserted the project will help enliven the area around the arena.

The massive project will be built in stages, with the first phase to include the multi-story retail base, a supermarket, a cinema, a 306-room hotel, and the 4-story underground parking garage.

Construction is expected to begin this Spring.

Trans National Group Plans 740-ft Financial District 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 in the fall of 2015.

Five Boston Mega-Projects to Watch in 2015

If you have ever been stuck in rush hour traffic, you know Greater Boston is in the midst of a major building boom. The signs are everywhere, from exposed steel for super tall skyscrapers such as the Millennium Tower to large cranes for massive apartment complexes on the waterfront.
 

But some of the Boston’s largest projects are still waiting to get underway, including the Fenway Center mega-project and the big-time redevelopment of the Harbor Garage.

Large developments such as the Residences @ Malden Station and the Roxbury Innovation Center show us how widely the real estate boom is reverberating.

Here’s a list of five Big Projects to watch in 2015:

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1. Fenway Center

     Commonwealth & Brookline Avenues
     Boston, MA 02215

This much delayed mega-project, with its five buildings and several hundred apartments plus commercial space, may, in fact, finally get under way this year. Developer John Rosenthal is in the midst of a partnership deal that could jumpstart development.

[see ElectricWeb-Boston | June 16, 2014]

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2. One Seaport Square 

     1 Seaport Lane      
     Boston, MA 02210

The 1.1 million-square-foot project broke ground in mid-November and will include two 22-story towers, called the Benjamin and VIA, with 832 apartments total. It is the first residential phase of the larger Seaport Square project.

[see ElectricWeb-Boston | Sept 15, 2014]

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3. Harbor Garage Towers

     70 East India Row
     Boston, MA 02110

Plans for this long-delayed redevelopment call for two towers, rising up to 650 and 550 feet. The complex will host hundreds of condos and hotel rooms, 700,000 square feet of office space and amenities such as an all-seasons plaza for the public.

[see ElectricWeb-Boston | Aug 28, 2014]

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4. Assembly Row

     Artisan Way 
     Somerville, MA 02145

Somerville's mega-mixed-use project is already slated to include more than 2,000 housing units and dozens of retail stores and a new Orange Line stop.

Plans, however, emerged toward the tail end of 2014 to basically double the size of Assembly Row and basically add more of everything.

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5. Six New Street 

     6 New Street   
     Boston, MA 02128 

This 4-acre complex broke ground in late December and is slated to create 259 new apartments along the Eastie waterfront with a ton of extras, including a water taxi dock. It's a big win for the waterfront and an indication that more development will follow.

  

Government Center Redevelopment: 6 Buildings, $1 Billion +

Developers plan to construct a huge 528-foot glass skyscraper at the corner of Congress and New Sudbury streets. The curvy 47-story tower would be the centerpiece of a Government Center redevelopment project, where builders are preparing to construct a cluster of high-rises to replace portions of the Government Center Garage.

The project, estimated to cost well over $1 billion, will include construction of three high-rises and three smaller buildings containing more than 2.3 million square feet of commercial and residential space.

The project will begin with a 42-story residential tower with 450 rental and condominium units, followed by removal of the part of the garage that hangs over Congress Street and the construction of the 47-story office building. The developer wants to begin construction later this year.

The new office tower, designed by architect Cesar Pelli, would be an unusually dramatic building for Boston, a city that has shied away from the kind of eye-popping architecture that defines the skylines of other major cities.

In all, the project would result in six buildings containing 2.3 million square feet of commercial and residential space.

Three high-rises would be built on the western portion of the site, and three smaller buildings would be built along the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway.

 A retail plaza would create a new connection between the Greenway and Canal Street.

While the portion of the garage above the street would be demolished, the core of the building at Congress and New Sudbury would remain, preserving 1,100 parking spaces. That part of the garage would be hidden behind the new high-rises.

The development has received approval from the Boston Redevelopment Authority, but plans for each building must also be approved by the agency’s design commission. BRA director Brian Golden has offered strong support for the project.

“The redevelopment of the Government Center Garage site will reshape the downtown skyline in a way that few projects can,” he said. “We welcome a creative approach to its design and look forward to working with the architecture team to review their proposal more carefully.”

Developer Tom O’Brien, a principal of HYM Investment Group, said the project’s architecture is meant to call attention to the vast change it would bring to the city’s downtown.

He noted that it would remove one of the area’s worst eyesores, a relic of the Urban Renewal Era, and reconnect the Bulfinch Triangle to the North End and Beacon Hill.

Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects of New Haven is collaborating on the design with CBT Architects of Boston.

The project's primary investor is the National Electrical Benefit Fund.

Boston is experiencing a burst of real estate development, transforming much of its downtown and outlying neighborhoods. A retail and condominium tower is under construction at the former Filene’s site in Downtown Crossing. Additional towers are being proposed at Winthrop Square in the Financial District and at the site of the Harbor Garage on Atlantic Avenue.

In the Bulfinch Triangle, Related Beal is building a new headquarters for Converse Inc., and Boston Properties plans to construct a series of towers in front of the TD Garden.

Lutron’s Commercial Energy Codes, Controls and LEDs Seminar

Lutron’s Commercial Energy Codes, Controls and LEDs Roadshow Comes to Boston!

Lutron goes on the road to empower electrical contractors and engineers to exceed customers’ increasingly diverse LED controlling demands while complying with the latest energy codes.

Lutron Electronics, will visit 10 major markets in 2015 with a brand new seminar that will help electrical contractors and engineers better meet the increasingly diverse demands of customers, while complying with rapidly-changing energy codes.

The Commercial Energy Codes, Controls and LEDs Seminar will present attendees with impactful information and tools that will dramatically simplify the design, specification and installation of LED lighting controls in an increasingly energy-regulated world.

“We understand how difficult it can be to stay on top of all of the latest advancements and changing regulations in the lighting and LED controls space. As a trusted advisor to our customers, we wanted to help untangle the information that is out there in a straightforward and informative way. That’s the precise intent of our Commercial Energy Codes, Controls and LEDs Seminar,” said Rick Angel, Senior Vice-President at Lutron.

National, state and local energy legislation is constantly changing making it challenging for industry professionals to stay on top of the latest direction of energy codes and energy-saving products. Electrical contractors and engineers are working on more and more major renovation and new commercial construction projects demanding that they be at the forefront of energy efficient products, including LED lighting control systems. Understanding the great need for information and guidance in this area, Lutron created the Commercial Energy Codes, Controls and LEDs Seminar to provide customers with information they can trust to help grow their businesses.

View training locations and schedule >

Lutron’s Commercial Energy Codes, Controls & LEDs Seminar will visit 10 major markets:

1.      Washington, D.C. - March 3
2.      New York – March 10
3.      Miami – March 12
4.      Houston - March 24
5.      Dallas - March 26
6.      Boston - March 31
7.      San Francisco - April 21
8.      Los Angeles - April 23
9.      Chicago - May 14
10.    Atlanta - May 21

For more information, contact your local Lutron Representative or email sales@lutron.com.
  

Copley Place Tower to Rise 52-Stories Over Neiman Marcus

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 hopes to break ground by the end of this year. Construction is expected to last 3 years.