A Boston developer partnering with Harvard University has a new game plan for a high-profile but dormant development site bordering the Massachusetts Turnpike in Allston.
Boston-based Berkeley Investments is proposing to redevelop the Boston Tech Center property at 176 Lincoln St. into a three-building complex including a pair of office-lab buildings and a 314-unit multifamily building.
The existing structure would be demolished, and approximately one acre of open space would be retained on the 5.2-acre site.
The project also includes 20,000 square feet of retail space, according to a letter of intent submitted Monday to the Boston Planning & Development Agency.
“Berkeley looks forward to 176 Lincoln being among the first major projects to be conceived and proposed in a post-COVID environment, incorporate new design, engineering and operating strategies in light of this new normal, while also revitalizing a long-time vacant parcel located in a vibrant neighborhood in close proximity to transit,” President Young Park wrote.
The project will require dimensional and use variances from the zoning board of appeals.
The uncompleted Boston Tech Center was originally envisioned by Cabot, Cabot & Forbes for a telecom data center but stalled during the industry’s sharp downturn in the early 2000s. Harvard bought the property in 2006 and had held off on redevelopment plans until last summer, when it selected Berkeley Investments to lead the new project.
Construction of the nearby Boston Landing station on the MBTA commuter rail has catalyzed development in nearby Allston-Brighton neighborhoods, including a series of industrial-to-multifamily housing conversions.