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Just 13 days after buying a three-parcel industrial site in Charlestown for $74.5 million, developer Related Beal is seeking to demolish the 645-unit CubeSmart Self-Storage facility at 420 Rutherford Ave. to build a 101,000-square-foot R&D building.

The development will require zoning board of appeals approval for R&D use as well as a variance for building height, and possibly for mechanical equipment covering one-third of the roof, according to a notification letter submitted to the Boston Planning & Development Agency.

The building height would be 75 feet including rooftop mechanicals, with the highest occupied floor at approximately 54 feet.

In an indication that the developer may have a tenant in mind, the letter states that the project will comply with National Institutes of Health guidelines for the use of laboratory animals.

On July 1, The Related Cos. paid $74.5 million for the three-parcel Charlestown portfolio, which also includes leased buildings at 6 Bunker Hill Industrial Park and 440 Rutherford Ave.

The proposed redevelopment follows the continuing pattern of industrial buildings in the urban core being replaced by higher-renting uses including life science. That’s forcing industrial developers to look west of Interstate 495 in search of development sites, particularly for e-commerce distribution facilities.