By Greg Ryan
A Boston-based real estate developer is proposing a 12-story, 227-unit residential building in Alewife, the Cambridge neighborhood that was put under a construction moratorium for more than a year out of fear it would be overrun by life sciences labs.
Boylston Properties is hosting community meetings next week to discuss its plans to redevelop 745 Concord Ave., which is now home to a one-story office building. The property is located across from Fresh Pond, right near the city’s border with Belmont — a one-mile walk from the Alewife MBTA station.
When Boylston first contemplated buying the site in 2021, the firm thought it would become a life sciences facility, said Boylston principal Andrew Copelotti. But soon afterward, the Cambridge City Council voted to freeze construction in much of Alewife in order to rezone the area, a response in part to Denver-based lab developer Healthpeak Properties Inc.’s rapid-fire acquisition of parcels in the neighborhood.
A year ago, the city finalized new zoning that seeks to balance commercial and residential construction. The changes enable Boylston to build more densely on the site, so that a multifamily project now makes sense, according to Copelotti. It is contemplating 15 on-site parking spaces.
“Thank God the moratorium came along. We’d have a built or half-built life science building in a tough market,” Copelotti said. “Sometimes the projects you don’t do are the best ones.”
Copelotti hopes to formally file an application with Cambridge’s planning board late this fall. The project is poised to be the first major development proposal in Alewife since the moratorium was lifted when the new zoning was put into place.
The property is owned by an affiliate of Spinelli Commercial Properties, a small real estate firm that uses the building for its offices. Boylston’s purchase is contingent on project approval, Copelotti said.
“We hope we’re going to see a rate cut in the next few weeks from the Fed. That will help with interest rates. We’re hoping construction pricing is going to come down a little bit,” Copelotti said. “It’s really those two things that need to happen, not just for us.”
Market-rate housing construction in Cambridge has fallen significantly the past two years, and few multifamily projects have entered the development pipeline. Developers complain about the expense of city requirements such as those around affordability. The City Council is considering a proposal to allow for multifamily buildings of at least six stories citywide, which officials estimate could create close to 5,000 new homes by the year 2040.
In the years prior to the recent slowdown, Alewife saw substantial multifamily development close to the T station, from the likes of Hanover Co. and Cabot Cabot & Forbes. This summer, apartment builder Toll Brothers and partner PGIM opened a 525-unit complex, The Laurent, on Wheeler Street.
The MBTA is now seeking a development partner to redevelop the T station’s parking garage.