The Beal Cos. is hoping to purchase the Immune Disease Institute at 800 Huntington Ave. in Boston and replace it with a 5-story building.

More than a decade after a developer went on a secret buying spree in a Boston neighborhood, history may be repeating itself.

Questions are being raised about The Beal Cos.’ possible purchase of properties on Mission Hill near the Longwood Medical Area (LMA). The Boston-based firm may have a deal in the works that would include the Immune Disease Institute, a 2-story, concrete-and-brick research facility at 800 Huntington Ave., as well as several nearby multifamily homes.

At least one member of the Boston City Council has said he is aware of such plans. Meanwhile, other community leaders are concerned.

“I don’t know if Beal is just poking around or if they have these properties under agreement,” said James Hoffman, executive director of Mission Hill Neighborhood Housing Services, a nonprofit community development corporation whose mission is to preserve the close-knit neighborhood. “But I can tell you that there’s word on the street that they’re looking, and some people in the neighborhood are worried about Beal’s intentions. They haven’t contacted us and, as far as I know, they haven’t talked to anyone in the community.”

In 1997, Mayor Thomas M. Menino and residents were furious when Harvard University revealed that it had tapped The Beal Cos. to quietly buy 52 acres in Allston worth $88 million for the school’s expansion. Under the agreement, Beal acquired property on Harvard’s behalf from 1988 to 1994 with the intention of transferring title to the university.

Menino could not be reached for comment. In an e-mail, a spokeswoman for the Boston Redevelopment Authority said, “Because nothing is on file, we have no comment.”

At the time of Harvard’s revelation, former BRA Director Thomas O’Brien said he was frustrated to learn about the university’s role nine years after the purchases commenced. He said he was concerned that the properties would revert to nonprofit status. He also worried that institutional expansion would wreak havoc on Mission Hill with additional students, noise, traffic and parking problems.

“I know what happened in Allston and we know what happened on Mission Hill long ago when there was a battle with institutions over expansion,” Hoffman said. “It would certainly be a concern to the neighborhood if someone was quietly buying up properties because I don’t think it will be successful. We look forward to talking to them so we can find out what they have on their mind.”

Robert Beal, the company’s president, did not return a call seeking comment. In an e-mailed statement, a spokeswoman wrote, “The Beal Cos. are always looking for development opportunities, but as always, until we meet with the neighborhood or formalize any plans, we are not prepared to discuss.”

‘A Cooperative Relationship’

Boston City Councilor Michael Ross, a Mission Hill resident, said Beal executives have told him of plans to purchase the Huntington Avenue research institute and replace it with a 5-story building that would have similar uses. Any increase in height would require a zoning change and BRA approvals, he said.

In addition, Ross said Beal wants to buy several multifamily homes near the office building for the possible creation of a Planned Development Area, an overlay district that allows large or complex projects to override local zoning.

While Ross said he could support redevelopment of the research facility, Beal officials have been told that he would oppose any attempt to raze multifamily homes.

“I made it clear to them that those buildings cannot come down,” he said. “They should be rehabbed and returned for residential use as homeownership opportunities. I think they’re willing to do that.”

Ross said he is convinced that Beal is not secretly buying up property on Mission Hill. He said city officials are aware of the plans, including the BRA and some members of the community.

“I don’t know what happened in Allston,” Ross said. “But Beal is not doing this to quietly expand the LMA. I moved to Mission Hill, and I would never let anything happen to it. If I thought someone was coming here to be a straw or purchase property for an institution under an assumed name, I would be the first person to sound the alarm.”

Replacing the research facility, whose brick exterior creates a wall along Huntington Avenue, would improve a section of that street in need of a facelift, Ross said. The potential for a new building with ground-floor retail will enhance the area, he noted. In addition, reclaiming the nearby dwellings would prevent their use as student only-housing.

Hoffman, at Mission Hill Neighborhood Housing Services, said he would be surprised if Beal was acting on behalf of one of the medical facilities in the LMA.

“If one of the hospitals was planning something, I would find it highly unlikely that they would do it first and then come to us. We have a good relationship with them now and things have improved dramatically.”

For example, in 2003 his agency partnered with the New Boston Fund and NDC Development Assoc. in the creation of One Brigham Circle. The 190,000-square-foot office/retail complex serves as a gateway to Mission Hill.

The opening was the result of two decades of cooperation among the developers, city officials and the community. The project is home to Partners HealthCare Systems, Stop & Shop, Walgreens, and several banks and eateries. It also includes a large public plaza at the front of the building and a 5.5-acre park.

“Through the community process we learned that residents wanted a grocery store, retail, a park and underground parking,” Hoffman said. “Today, lots of construction is going on in the LMA, but it’s the result of a cooperative relationship between the neighborhood and the institutions.”

Paul Berkeley, president of the Allston Civic Association, who spoke out against Harvard and Beal’s secrecy in the 1990s, said he understands that developers want details of any sale private. If word leaks out, it could drive up the property’s price, he said.

“I know business people want to do these things secretly because there’s dollars and cents involved,” he noted. “But knowing that doesn’t make it any easier on the neighborhood. If Beal won’t tell the Mission Hill residents why they are purchasing it, I’d be suspicious that they may be buying it for someone. If they are not willing to talk about it, just look at history.”