$359m sale may speed Seaport’s completion
By Tim Logan
GLOBE STAFF OCTOBER 23, 2015
The last big chunk of open land in the Seaport is being sold in a $359 million deal that is likely to accelerate completion of the bustling new district.
WS Development of Chestnut Hill is buying the remaining 12.5 acres of the tract, known as Seaport Square, with an eye toward building offices, housing, and shops where a dwindling number of parking lots now sit.
It’s one of the priciest land deals ever in Boston. And at 2.8 million square feet of permitted space over 10 blocks, it’s among the biggest developments in the city.
-----
WS, best known for retail developments such as The Street in Chestnut Hill and Legacy Place in Dedham, says that beyond the skyline-altering buildings they’ll put up, they plan to bring lots of street life to a district that critics say lacks a certain vibrancy today.
WS hasn’t hired architects yet, but Marks said his firm aims to avoid the boxy glass towers that characterize much of the Seaport. He points to the elliptical glass tower that Skanska USA recently started on Seaport Boulevard and the terraced condo buildings BGI presented to the city as signs of progress. And he said he’d like to follow on that with more creative — and user-friendly — designs.
“We’re going to bring in art, music, skating rinks, chessboards, farmers markets, pianos,” Marks said. “We want to build places where people want to be.”