Multifamily housing may be dropped from the proposed redevelopment of the former Boston Edison power plant property, developers said as they prepare to submit revised plans to the Boston Planning and Development Agency this summer.
“We continue to explore a range of alternative uses for the buildings shown, including an all commercial site,” Boston-based Redgate said in a statement issued to Banker & Tradesman on Friday.
Elected officials and residents have objected to the density of the development and its effects on traffic congestion and MBTA bus routes’ capacity in South Boston. And Massport holds a deed restriction prohibiting residential uses on the 15-acre property, which abuts its Conley Container Terminal trucking route.
Boston-based Redgate and Hilco Redevelopment Partners last week submitted plans to the Boston Civic Design Commission for 1.78 million square feet of multifamily and commercial development on the 15-acre parcel at 776 Summer St. The project originally would have been 2.1 million square feet.
The new proposal calls for 750 housing units, down from the original 1,344, along with nearly 470,000 square feet of R&D space, 330,000 square feet of office space, 344 hotel rooms and 81,000 square feet of retail space.
Redgate said The BCDC filing is not a final version of Redgate’s plans and it continues to explore a range of options for the mix of uses, including one without housing, the company said in its statement.
The inclusion of R&D space would be a new component of the plan, as many developers seek to meet the life science industry’s demand for expansion throughout Greater Boston.
Massport officials said this spring they would hold a public process before the agency’s board votes whether to lift the deed restriction. Spokeswoman Jennifer Mehigan said last week the agency is waiting for an update from the developer before scheduling the public forum.