$1.6 Billion Redevelopment in Downtown Quincy

By Veronica Grecu, Associate Editor

Quincy’s historic downtown is set to undergo complex redevelopment by a joint venture between White Plains, NY-based Street-Works Development, a company that specializes in urban redevelopment projects, and local real estate developer The Beal Cos. After years of planning, the $1.6 billion Beal/Street-Works partnership will transform the 3.5-million-square-foot Quincy Center into  an exciting mixed-use development that will feature office buildings, retail space, and hotels, as well as rental and condo residential units.

In an interview for Commercial Property Executive, co-founder and managing partner of Street-Works Ken Narva said that the 1.1 million square feet of office space will include two possibly interconnected buildings of up to 20 stories and with up to 35,000-square-foot floor plates. The Quincy Center office facilities will aim to keep pace with Boston’s economy trends and attract wellness/medical tenants as well as higher education and corporate office target tenants. Work on the office buildings, a parking garage and a large retail building is scheduled to start in 2013.

The project’s highlight will be the 400,000-square-foot retail component—Cottage Row will boast more than 30 shops and restaurants, and a market square will feature retailspaces, a farmer’s market and community entertainment areas, according to the Boston Globe. The plans also include two boutique hotels, one designed for business travelers and the other for tourists and other visitors. For the residential component, the developers plan to create more than 1,400 new rental units and condominiums.

Quincy authorities, and Mayor Thomas P. Koch especially, will support the redevelopment project by borrowing $289 million for road and other infrastructure improvements. According to the Globe, the city plans to pay back the loan from future tax and parking garage revenues. Another $60 million will come from federal financing.

Illustration courtesy of World Property Channel website