| A boutique Greater Boston developer plans to reboot a landmark Cambridge building into a 46,300-square foot mixed-use project including an extended stay hotel.
Chevron Partners filed plans with the Cambridge Planning Board to redevelop the 24,100-square-foot Gas Light Building at 711 Massachusetts Ave. in Central Square by adding three set-back stories on top of the building, which currently houses a Bank of America branch, an independent convenience store and the offices of investment firm InTeahouse. The project was designed by Finegold Alexander Architects.
Chevron owns Boston landmarks Maison Vernon at the corner of Charles and Beacon streets and the Sears Crescent in Government Center and its affiliated company has executed a similar hotel project in Paris, France called My Maison in Paris.
The hotel will include 13 350-square-foot studio-style units, 20 550-square-foot one-bedroom units and four 820-square-foot two-bedroom units on the building’s third through sixth floors. Mass. Ave.-side rooms on the fourth floor will open onto small, private roof decks, while all units will have access to a common roof deck at the building’s roof. While the hotel front desk will be staffed at all times, the application states, the hotel won’t include a bar, concierge or other traditional amenities beyond on-site laundry. The hotel marks the second proposed in Cambridge so far this year.
The building’s bottom three floors will be largely reconfigured, including making the entire structure compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The bank branch will stay in place, the application states but the convenience store space will be divided into three retail units for a total of 3,100 square feet of space. Chevron may lease out one of the spaces to a cafe for the public and hotel guests. Total office space in the project will shrink by 2,400 square feet, to 18,700, and will be confined to the second and third floors. The building will include on-site bicycle storage for 8 bikes and showers for both hotel guests and office workers. Chevron’s application states they are pursuing parking agreements with owners of nearby garages for both hotel and office tenants to use.
