"That tower is just like putting lipstick on a pig."

"The glass is going to sparkle. The concrete doesn’t."

"The thing on the roof is just terrible."

"It’ll look a lot better than it did before."

Those are just a few of the comments from neighbors of the proposed redevelopment of the former Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse in East Cambridge, where Legatt McCall Properties is proposing offices, apartments and restaurants and shops on the ground floor.

The firm was selected by the state’s real estate department to completely make over the 22-story, asbestos-ridden building, built by the concrete-crazy government in the early 1970s, which is home to courtrooms and inmates.

Now, Legatt is proposing to replace the gray, government-issue property with a glass tower, dotted on many floors and windows with vines or trees. The exterior of the bottom four levels were shown as reddish terracotta that resembles brick in the latest renderings from the project architect, Elkus Manfredi. The two large courtroom docks on the exterior of the tower would be open, with trees or vines spilling out to the sun.

The building will house 460,000 square feet of office space, 15,000 square feet of retail and 24 one- and two-bedroom apartments. As it is just steps from Kendall Square, the developer will likely lease much of the space to technology firms. The project could have up to 145 parking spaces. If approved, the $200 million project could start early next year.

The ground floor retail portion of the project will be broken into nine spaces, with a tenth reserved as "flex space," according to the developer’s latest renderings. While it is still unclear what kinds of shops or eateries will fill the spaces, it could be a prime location for stores outgrowing their Kendall Square homes, like the Tatte Bakery and Café, said Jesse Baerkahn, who Legatt hired recently to help with the retail leasing.

"But this isn’t Kendall Square," he added. "We have to be really careful how we do this."

Legatt brought its latest iteration of the proposal to the East Cambridge community last night, where residents both lauded and decried the developer’s efforts. Many appreciated the fact apartments were included in the latest rendering, but took issue with several parts of the proposal.

One in particular was a fifth floor patio that will be available for office tenants, but Rob Dickey, partner with Legatt, said it was too early to commit to making it available to the public because of security concerns. Another issue for some residents was the rooftop structure, which some audience members found unattractive, one calling it "terrible."

"We’ve responded to the concerns that have come up in various meetings with the neighborhood," Dickey said.