The Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) has proposed new zoning guidelines for the Harrison Avenue and Albany Street neighborhood in the South End (referred to as the Harrison-Albany Corridor). The guidelines pave the way for significant redevelopment of the Corridor, which at full build-out is slated to total 10 million square feet of new development.
The Corridor is divided into four distinct areas: 1) the Medical Area, which currently houses Boston Medical Center; 2) Back Streets, which intends to preserve light industrial uses in the Corridor; 3) SOWA, a mixed use neighborhood; and 4) New York Streets, which is to serve as a cultural and economic link between the South End and Chinatown, near the Theater District. A key parcel to be redeveloped will undoubtedly be the six-acre Boston Herald headquarters at the corner of Harrison and Traveler Streets. The Herald will be vacating its 53-year home and moving to the Seaport next year.
The guidelines call for significant increases in height and density, allowing building heights of 200 feet along Albany Street and Floor Area Ratio (FAR) allowances of 6.5. The guidelines feature public realm benefits like private streets, alleys, pedestrian ways and place-making spaces (pocket parks and plazas), spaced in an intervaled grid layout designed to provide pedestrian- and bike-friendly breaks along the streetscape. The costs of the public realm benefits are to be borne by the developers. The guidelines also call for reworking of both traffic patterns and public transportation routes to improve traffic circulation.
The guidelines are ambitious and, if realized, will provide a connection from the isolated Boston Crosstown Center to the revitalized Corridor and downtown, rivaling the recent stunning start of the Seaport redevelopment. Whether the current market will accommodate at least parts of the Corridor plan is anyone’s guess, but at least there’s a coherent plan in place if it does. The guidelines will be reviewed by the South End Landmarks District Commission in October before going to the BRA board for a vote in November. Final adoption – if that happens – will be by the Zoning Commission in January.