South Boston Waterfront Looks to Be a Cultural Destination
The BRA and real estate investment trust firm UDR are working together to develop Pier 4 into a cultural destination.
South Boston Waterfront property 100 Pier 4 is almost complete, containing 21 stories and 388 apartment units already being leased by real estate investment trust UDR.
The ground level of the building will contain retail, a restaurant and 20,000 square feet of “civic space.’’
The Boston Redevelopment Authority is currently fielding responses from “Boston-based qualified civic and cultural operators’’ to a request for interest to obtain ideas for what to do with the yet-to-be-defined civic space.
“The request for interest is something the Mayor’s office suggested as a way to support the cultural institutions that are in Boston,’’ BRA Deputy Director for Waterfront Planning Richard McGuinness told Boston.com.
Responses to the request are due May 4. The BRA and UDR will evaluate the responses for their potential to be a tourist attraction, the strength of their business plan, the staff they will bring with them and their budget, according to McGuinness. He said that some people have suggested the space go to a maritime museum, since it is right on the water.
“We have an opportunity on the harbor to transform Pier 4 into a destination that will bring tourism and fuel our local economy,’’ Mayor Marty Walsh said in a statement this week. “Arts, culture and innovation are how we will create a thriving 21st century city, and this project gives us the opportunity to meet those goals and liven up a public space.’’
This is only phase one of transforming the Pier 4 area. Phase two will be a 15-story office tower and phase three will be a 9-story luxury condo building. But the BRA’s goal is to have the area become more than just a place to live and work – it wants a mixed-use community where the public is enticed to come visit.
The BRA also plans to create 127,000 square feet of public space along the waterfront with parks, a harbor walk, and public docks.
“We are trying to avoid what you see in the Financial District,’’ McGuinness said, “where there are just offices and there is no one around in the evening and on weekends.’’
The people of Boston paid a lot of tax dollars to get the Boston Harbor cleaned and that it should be put to good use, according to McGuinness.
The BRA wants to make sure “the return is not just clean water but also access and enjoyment,’’ he said.
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