National Development’s plans for a large-scale South Boston mixed-use development now include lab space, with the developer and financing partner AEW Capital Management this month formally pitching their plans for a four-building complex spanning a combined 1.15 million square feet on 5.4 acres in South Boston.
The project would include two 11-story office and lab properties with a combined 644,100 square feet of development as well as a 14-story and 20-story residential buildings with a combined 345 units and accompanying retail/restaurant/grocery space at 323-365 Dorchester Ave. The building heights will top out at 290 feet and 154 feet for the residential buildings and 260 feet for both lab buildings.
National Development had initially proposed a single residential tower at 333 Dorchester Ave. prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, and stepped back amid the accompanying business shutdown to combine its plans for Dorchester Avenue into a single proposal.
“We have spent the past two years working closely with and listening carefully to the various groups that have a vested interest in this corridor, and we have developed plans that we think are consistent with the top priorities we have heard,” said Ed Marsteiner, managing partner of National Development, in a statement. “We look forward to continuing robust discussions with all involved.”
The 5.4-acre project is just a portion of what National Development owns along the stretch of Dorchester Avenue between the Broadway and Andrew MBTA stations. The developer’s holdings also include vacant manufacturing properties on Old Colony Avenue — including the former Cole Hersee building — that will house a commissary, bakery, test kitchen and retail store for Tatte Bakery, as well as Castle Island Brewing, Rock Spot Climbing, Freight Farms and more.
For the 323-365 Dorchester Ave. site, National Development is proposing a network of open space, streets and sidewalks on an area that is mostly dominated by low-lying industrial and retail buildings adjacent to MBTA railyards. The developers intend to raise the entire site by several feet to protect from future flooding. The project team for the 5.4-acre site includes Elkus Manfredi Architects, ZGF Architects, COOKFOX Architects, Future Green and Arup.
National expects to begin a 30-month construction period in July 2022.
By Catherine Carlock
Boston Business Journal
4/6/2021