As of July, the metro’s pipeline included 100 projects totaling some 20,600 units, according to Yardi Matrix data.
Even though multifamily development was impacted by Boston’s construction restrictions put into place in mid-March, the metro has already delivered 21 projects since the start of the year. Demand for rental housing has been mostly driven by Millennials in the tech, financial and life sciences sectors, looking for apartments in walkable areas.
By July, 100 projects totaling some 20,600 units were underway in the metro. This represented 1.7 percent of existing stock, 40 basis points above the national average, Yardi Matrix data shows. Additionally, another 56,300 were in the planning and permitting stages. From the Top 10 largest residential project currently under construction, more than half are part of large mixed-use redevelopments and include a portion of the units set aside to be affordable to those who meet certain income requirements.
10. BREAKWATER
Taking shape on the site of the former Beacon Chevrolet dealership and overlooking the Lynn Harbor, Breakwater will include 331 units in two buildings. Callahan Construction Managers, Dolben Co., Minco Development Corp. and HDS Architecture have teamed up for the luxury development located some 10 miles from the metro’s downtown. The project received a $1 million grant from the Seaport Economic Council to improve the seawall, and a second grant from MassWorks to help with traffic on the Lynnway, the highway connecting Lynn, Mass., to Boston.
9. HANOVER MYSTIC RIVER
With another four residential projects in different stages of development in the metro, The Hanover Co. is set to deliver Hanover Mystic River by summer’s end. The 350-unit, three-building property in Medford, Mass., will include 49 affordable units and is some 5 miles north of downtown Boston. At the end of 2018, Wells Fargo Bank provided a $78.7 million construction loan.
8. THE SUDBURY
The Sudbury is the residential portion of the 2.9 million-square-foot mixed-use Bulfinch Crossing, which received a $250 million loan from Pacific Life Insurance Co. at the beginning of 2018. The Government Center Garage redevelopment will include 1.2 million square feet of office space, 82,500 square feet of retail and 200 hotel rooms. National Real Estate Advisors and The HYM Investment Group are expecting The Sudbury to be delivered in October. Comprising 368 units, the 46-story tower includes 63 affordable units and seeks LEED Gold certification.
7. NEMA BOSTON
Crescent Heights’ only current development in the metro, NEMA Boston is set to be completed in September and will include 414 units, 63 of which will be affordable. With $157 million in financing from Ullico, the 19-story tower seeks LEED certification, and includes micro units and sustainable features. Located in South Boston, the development is within walking distance of the waterfront and plenty of retail and dining choices, and less than a mile from both South Station and the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.
6. HUB50HOUSE
Part of Delaware North and Boston Properties’ 1.5 million square-foot, transit-oriented mixed-use The Hub on Causeway, Hub50House will include 440 units in a luxury 38-story tower. Set to open at the end of the month, the property comprises studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments. Located adjacent to North Station on the site of the former Boston Garden, the project will be completed in three phases using financing from the Bank of New York Mellon.
5. GARDEN GARAGE
Located in Boston’s West End submarket, the Garden Garage redevelopment will comprise 469 units, retail space and 830 underground parking spaces. The 44-story towers will occupy the former garage space at 35 Lomasney Way and is set to open in March 2021. In 2006, project developer Equity Residential delivered the submarket’s first new housing property in 20 years
4. FLAT9 AT WHITTIER
FLAT 9 at Whittier is a 576-unit redevelopment of the Whittier Street public housing development in the Roxbury submarket, originally constructed in 1953. Boston Housing Authority broke ground on the project at the beginning of 2018 and anticipates completion at the end of this month. Preservation of Affordable Housing will be overseeing leasing activities at the community. The green development is pursuing LEED certification and includes 388 affordable units.
3. THE ABBY
The Bozzuto Group, this time partnering with Atlantic Development, is working on the mixed-use, transit-oriented MBTA’s Red Line North Quincy Station redevelopment. Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. provided $159 million in construction financing. Located at 189 Hancock St. in Quincy, Mass., the project will be 8 miles south of downtown Boston.
The Abby is the residential component of the project and comprises 610 units in three buildings. Delivery is expected in two phases, with the first units ready for occupancy by May 2021 and remaining units ready in January 2022.
2. THE SMITH SOUTH END
The Smith South End is set for completion at the end of the month and will consist of 650 units divided into studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom options, with 140 of the units reserved as affordable. Leggat McCall Properties, together with partner Bentall Kennedy and development adviser The Bozzuto Group, purchased the site from Boston Medical Center in 2014 and broke ground for the first of two phases in 2018.
The property also includes 20,000 square feet of ground-floor retail and a 650-space underground parking garage. Leasing is currently underway and the project is targeting LEED Silver. Located less than 3 miles south of downtown Boston, the property was named after the artisan history in the area south of Washington Street.
1.VERO
The largest project under construction in the metro, VERO, will feature 694 units along Everett Avenue in the Chelsea submarket and is expected to come online at the end of January next year. Developed and managed by Fairfield Residential, the two-building property occupies 6.8 acres just 4 miles northwest of the Logan International Airport and within 6 miles of top-rated universities in the country.
