Boston-based developer Leggat McCall Properties has agreed to acquire a 108-acre parcel off I-93 for a mixed-use development that could include more than 1 million square feet of offices, retail, restaurants and multifamily buildings.

Bill Gause, director of acquisitions for Leggat McCall, said the project could include 550,000 square feet of office space, approximately 200,000 square feet of retail including a grocer and department store, and 200 residential units including a mix of apartments and condos.

Woburn officials are considering a new zoning district that would permit buildings up to 10 stories and a mix of commercial and residential space. The site also spans parts of Stoneham and Winchester, but the 57-acre portion of the property located in Woburn on the west side of I-93 is believed to have the most development potential.

Kraft Foods put the former Atlantic Gelatin factory on the market late last year as it decommissioned the 400,000-square-foot plant that manufactured food ingredients and gelatin for decades.

The sales price was not available. The Hill Street parcel attracted widespread interest from developers, according to Justin Smith, a managing director at Newmark Grubb Knight Frank in Boston, which marketed the property for Kraft Foods.

In March, Woburn Mayor Scott Galvin proposed a new technology and business mixed-use overlay district  designed to encourage large-scale development on the site and other parcels that are at least 10 acres. The changes are designed to attract life science and office users and also encourage development near the MBTA’s Anderson/Woburn transit hub on Commerce Way. A public hearing is scheduled for Aug. 16.

Leggat McCall is performing due diligence on issues including environmental cleanup costs and waiting for clarity on the zoning change before it closes on the property, Gause said.

“We applaud the city of Woburn for being proactive in addressing the potential redevelopment of the site,” Gause said. “We at least want to have an indication from the city of how receptive they will be and how the zoning is likely to look.”

Leggat McCall is active in Boston development with a pending proposal for a 710-unit multifamily and commercial project covering two blocks off Albany Street in the South End.

Leggat McCall Set To Acquire Big I-93 Development Site

by Steve Adams time to read: 1 min
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