Boston real estate firm Related Beal is seeking approval from the City of Boston to develop a group of buildings near Faneuil Hall to create more restaurants, cafés and retail outlets in the area.
Related Beal plans to redevelop buildings it purchased from Fidelity Investments in Boston’s financial district in Dec. 2013. The firm intends to submit a proposal to the Boston Redevelopment Authority in the near future, said Related Beal Executive Vice President Stephen Faber.
“We’ve always been a group that is very interested in urban downtown Boston,” he said. “We saw this as a tremendous opportunity to reinvigorate and rejuvenate this particular block, which for the last 40 years has been almost sequestered by Fidelity as their corporate headquarters.”
Though Faber did not disclose the exact cost of the project, he said Related Beal plans to invest tens-of-millions-of dollars into the redevelopment.
The development plan, termed “Congress Square” by Related Beal, includes a boutique hotel with a rooftop restaurant and bar on 54 and 68 Devonshire St. as well as multi-family residential buildings on 15 and 19 Congress St. Both establishments will include retail on the street level. Some commercial office buildings will also remain on 40 Water St.
Faber called Congress Street and the surrounding block an underutilized retail opportunity and said the buildings Related Beal acquired are ideally situated to provide new food and beverage service options. One major component of the plan is to transform Quaker Lane, a quiet alley off of Congress Street, into an al fresco food and entertainment location.
“We’re taking what is today nothing more than a service alley and creating a really interesting destination where there’ll be outdoor seating and cafés, bars and restaurants that we think will be unique,” Faber said.
Related Beal has not yet submitted a formal proposal to the city, but Faber said the plans have been favorably received in informal communication with members of the BRA.
“Like everybody, we have to go through a formal process, which we’re going to kick off,” he said. “But given the really relatively minor physical changes that we’re seeking, we hope to accomplish our permitting in an expeditious manner.”
Nick Martin, the director of communications at BRA, said the organization is eager for Beal Related to submit its proposal.
“The area that they’re talking about redeveloping is a historic area of Boston’s downtown, and we think it’s one that’s prime for revitalization,” he said. “We’re definitely excited to see a plan that could breathe new life into the area and help to reactivate the street space there.”
Mixed-use development, such as in the Congress Square plan, is a growing concept in Boston planning that strongly appeals to BRA, Martin said.
“We’re a very concentrated downtown, and that makes it even more important for developments to not just be singularly focused on office or retail necessarily, but to incorporate lots of different aspects,” he said
Christian Marchal, 21, of the North End, said he sees a need for more retail opportunity to improve weekend activity along and near Congress Street.
“Friday after five until Monday morning, it’s a ghost town because no restaurants are open since there’s no businesspeople there,” he said. “If you could have restaurants that were there for the weekends, maybe a couple bars, and liven up the area, that would be beneficial.”
Susan Murley, 60, of Brighton, said she fears the creation of an “endless array of boutiques and restaurants,” but she sees how redevelopment would benefit Boston financially.
“As long as it doesn’t destroy old buildings and tear up historic landmarks, I would say economy rules,” she said. “A lot of people are really interested in Boston’s history. There are tons of people walking around looking for historic Boston, and I think that should be taken into consideration.”
Basel Badawi, 49, of South Boston, said he is particularly interested in the plans to develop Quaker Lane.
“You would be amazed how a little area like that will make so many more people visit the area,” he said. “There are thousands of people working here, and they need a lot of cafes, restaurants and anything we can do to make the city nicer. It’s great.”
