New England’s Tallest Residential Tower, 691 Feet

Construction will soon get underway on a $700 million, 60-story tower, to be built on the edge of Christian Science Plaza, at Belvidere and Dalton streets. The new 691-foot skyscraper, which will include 250 hotel rooms and 180 luxury condominiums, will be the tallest residential tower in New England. The 950,000-square-foot plaza redevelopment project, which is expected to begin later this year, will also include a 26-story residential tower with 255 apartments.

The 60-story tower, located at 1 Dalton Street in the Back Bay, will be designed by Henry Cobb, the same architect who designed the John Hancock Tower in the 1970s.

His firm, Pei Cobb Freed & Partners of New York, also designed the Christian Science Plaza and its signature reflecting pool.

The 712,500 square foot Back Bay tower, along with the adjacent 237,500 square foot residential building, will be located at the corner of Belvidere and Dalton Streets.

The 691-foot building is crafted in the shape of an equilateral triangle with rounded corners, a form designed to complement the adjacent Christian Science Church, which was built in 1896.

The Christian Science Tower will stand 99 feet shorter than the city's tallest structure, but will surpass the Millennium Tower and the tower set to rise at 5 Copley Square - both slated for 625 feet - as the city’s tallest residential building.

Overall, the skyscraper will be the third-tallest structure in Boston, behind the750-foot Prudential Tower and the John Hancock Tower, which stands 790 feet.

The 250-room Four Seasons will occupy the first 20 floors of the building, and 180 ultra high-end condominiums will be spread across the upper 40. The Four Seasons will continue to manage its existing hotel on Boylston Street.

The new Four Seasons is designed to complement the existing hotel on Boylston Street. It will have smaller ballrooms and conference spaces, offering more of a boutique luxury product

The tower will include two restaurants, two lounges, and a health club and spa.

Its residences are certain to be among the most expensive in the city, challenging the Mandarin Oriental and new units under construction at Fan Pier.

The Four Seasons is designed to complement the existing hotel on Boylston Street. It will have smaller ballrooms and conference spaces, offering more of a boutique luxury product

The project’s master developer is Cambridge-based Carpenter & Co., which also developed Boston’s Liberty Hotel and the Charles Hotel in Cambridge.

The project will fill a void between some of the Back Bay’s most significant properties.

“Right now, the Christian Science Plaza and the Prudential Center sit next to each other, but don’t talk to each other,” said Cobb, a Boston native.

“This project will be a new connection and bring this very important part of the city to life.”

The First Church of Christ, Scientist has been lobbying for a redesign for years.

Much of the reason is financial: Profitable real estate would make the site self-sustaining, so that donations to the church can be put more directly toward its mission.

The church also aims to bring its plaza up to date with a 21st-century approach to urban design, in which active public spaces are key.

The site attracts plenty of sightseers as the Christian Science faith’s international headquarters and a major Boston landmark, but it has not lived up to its potential.

The new project is expected to bring thousands of new residents and visitors to one of the city’s most celebrated landmarks.