A decision this week by the Boston Redevelopment Authority could spark major development in North Allston, allowing Harvard to move forward with a big, big chunk of its big, big plans for the neighborhood.
The BRA board is expected to vote on Thursday on Harvard and development partner Samuel & Associates' plan for 325 new apartments and 45,000 square feet of retail at Barry's Corner. The redevelopment of the 2.67-acre site at North Harvard Street and Western Avenue has been a long and controversial time coming; and is part of Harvard's larger vision to remake the neighborhood as a satellite campus, with hundreds of thousands of square feet of new and renovated space over the next decade.
Barry's Corner, in particular, is supposed to become some sort of Davis Square II, a pedestrian-friendly residential and retail area. The proposed Harvard/Samuel & Associates buildings are key to this transformation, though they're smaller than the developers originally intended, clocking in at between six and nine stories instead of 11, after community opposition. And, as for the pedestrian-friendly bit of the Barry's Corner vision, some surrounding residents are still peeved that the developers dropped the number of parking spaces in the project from 220 to 180. Can't win on parking in Boston.
· Harvard's Barry's Corner Development Creeps Closer To Approval [Banker & Tradesman]
· Barry's Corner Plans in Allston: 325 Apts. in Shorter Buildings [Curbed Boston]
· Barry's Corner Is the New Davis Square [Curbed Boston]
· Paint Allston Crimson! Harvard's Details: New Arena, Offices [Curbed Boston]
· Bar Cars From a Boston Apartment Building? Bring It. [Curbed Boston]