The planned redevelopment of the Doyle's Cafe property in Jamaica Plain. Image courtesy of Scales Architecture Inc.
New developments will bring a major life science presence to Lower Allston, a 1 million-square-foot expansion of Massachusetts General Hospital and a next chapter for an iconic Jamaica Plain gathering spot under approvals by Boston Planning & Development Agency officials.
Boston-based life science developer King Street Properties is leading the transformation of Allston’s Western Avenue with its three-building NEXUS at the Allston Innovation Corridor project. The 576,000-square-foot development will include a pair of office-lab buildings and 35 multifamily housing units.
The approval comes as the BPDA continues to review another major development on Western Avenue, the Harvard Enterprise Research Campus, as well as a planning study that is recommending taller building heights and density for the neighborhood.
King Street – one of the most active private life science developers in Massachusetts – is partnering with the Stadium Auto Body owners and Mugar Enterprises to redevelop the 4.3-acre site which contains a mix of commercial and residential buildings.
Along with lab space expected to be leased by emerging life science companies, the project will include a Nexus Learning Lab including classroom space for programs introducing local students to the biotech industry. Developers also committed to reserve two-thirds of the ground-floor retail space for local tenants, while reserving 26 percent of the housing units as income-restricted.
BPDA directors approved 4.2 million square feet of projects at Thursday’s directors meeting, including a developer’s plans to add 29 condos to the former J.P. Doyle’s Cafe property in Jamaica Plain.
WaterMark Construction and Development is partnering with Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corp. on the project which will retain the existing building as a 100-seat Brassica Kitchen at Doyle’s operated by the owners of Jamaica Plain-based Brassica Kitchen & Cafe.
City Council President Pro Tempore Matt O’Malley praised the development team for preserving the neighborhood gathering spot dating back to 1882, while adding housing to the Washington Street site.
“Not only is it bringing back an esteemed institution, but also creating some opportunities for affordable home ownership for individuals,” O’Malley said.
A 4-story building containing 16 condos will be built at the corner of Washington and Gartland streets. Another seven-unit condo building will occupy the former Doyle’s parking lot, while six condos will be built at 69 Williams St.
In a major institutional project, Massachusetts General Hospital received approval for a new 1 million-square foot clinical building that will contain 482 patient beds, clinical services and office space. The 5-story clinical podium structure on Cambridge Street will link a pair of 14-story inpatient towers to support MGH’s strategy of expanding its inventory of single-patient rooms.
And National Development received approval to demolish the former Midtown Hotel and build 325 apartments in a 10-story building at 220 Huntington Ave. Up to 43 units will be reserved for households earning a maximum 70 percent of area median income.
