Photo by James Sanna | Banker & Tradesman staff
The city of Boston controls parcels and rights-of-way that the MBTA needs to access a planned layover yard at Widett Circle, giving it leverage to pressure the transit agency to accommodate a larger mixed-use development.
MBTA officials are planning to acquire the 24-acre Foodmart Road and Widett Circle parcels from a private development group, The Able Co., early this year to upgrade the capacity of the commuter rail system.
But Boston officials including Mayor Michelle Wu have said they want the MBTA to include air rights development at Widett Circle, as part of a larger development that would encompass the city’s neighboring 18-acre Frontage Road public works facility and impound lot.
“We still have all the leverage we need before any kind of [rail] storage can be constructed,” BPDA Director Arthur Jemison said at Thursday’s BPDA board meeting.
BPDA directors approved the termination of a 121A tax incentive agreement that has applied to the Boston Food Market wholesalers’ distribution property since 1967. The agreement was originally put in place when the Widett Circle property was developed to help the food vendors relocate from Quincy Market.
The MBTA’s acquisition would remove The Able Co., owner of Widett landowner New Boston Food Market corporation since 2020, from future discussions and simplify negotiations on the future of Widett Circle, Jemison said.
“This land gives us a position to come to the negotiating table with the MBTA and open up a series of other planning opportunities,” Jemison said. “We have had extensive discussions with the MBTA about other properties they own and we own next to this parcel.”
The Able Co., founded in 2018 by former Abbey Group executive William Keravuori, had envisioned 24 million square feet of development in the area, as previously reported by Banker & Tradesman.
The developer signed a preliminary agreement to collaborate with the city of Boston and state agencies on a large development including Widett Circle and city and MBTA-owned properties in March 2021, a copy of which was obtained from MassDOT by Banker & Tradesman this week under a public records request.
The MBTA’s now plans to acquire The Able Co.’s properties, potentially through eminent domain, after settling on Widett Circle as a preferred location for the rail yard.
“The MBTA determined they needed to move forward for reasons of their own, and I believe the door that opens here is for a dialogue with the MBTA and the city concerning the best use of this site,” said attorney Christopher Tsouros, who represents The Able Co.
The city of Boston and BPDA still own properties and rights-of-way that the MBTA would need to negotiate rights to access to develop the rail yard, Jemison said.
Mayor Michelle Wu has singled out Widett Circle and Frontage Road as one of the largest undeveloped areas in Boston, giving the city a chance to address such goals as housing production and coastal resiliency.
“I just want to be assertive about an expectation that whatever the outcome is, is one that clearly is beneficial of economic development, employment, resilience, and the other kinds of values and goals implicit in this particular site,” said BPDA board member Ted Landsmark, who voted against the motion to terminate the tax agreement.
