November 17, 2014 — Boston Development Group (BDG) and National Development announced today that they are forming a joint venture to develop the site of the former Circle Cinema at the intersection of Beacon Street and Chestnut Hill Avenue in Boston. The companies will jointly develop the property. Charles River Realty Investors will provide the capital for the project.
Ted Tye, Managing Partner of National Development, stated, “We are pleased to help bring development of this landmark site to fruition. There has been a great deal of effort put forth to date from the City of Boston, Town of Brookline, and the local community. Our combined team will work to move the project forward, with an anticipated mid-2015 construction start.”
Tye and BDG project manager John Meunier indicate that the program for the two building project would be similar to the currently proposed mixed-use hotel, residential and retail plan. The 162-key hotel and 92-unit residential project with retail along Chestnut Hill Ave will have some design modifications, including an overall decrease in building area. The developers plan the residential building as an age-restricted adult community much like National Development’s award-winning Waterstone at Wellesley independent living community in Wellesley Lower Falls, in part to address neighborhood comments.
“We see a huge need for urban residential alternatives for active senior adults,” said Tye. The Circle site’s access to public transportation, retail amenities in Cleveland Circle, Boston College, the reservoir and the adjacent park make it ideal for the hotel and active adult community. We’re strongly committed to excellence in building and landscape design and creating an active streetscape.”
A new design team has been formed. The architect for the project is Boston-based Elkus Manfredi Architects with the Boston studio of Stantec providing civil engineering and landscape architecture. Newton-based Cranshaw Construction is providing pre-development services