Pier 4 Civic and Cultural Space Finalists Public Presentations

Jul 06, 2015

6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
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  • Contact Name:

    Richard McGuinness

  • Contact Email Address:

    [email protected]

  • Type:

    Public Meeting

  • Location:

    District Hall
    75 Northern Ave
    Boston, MA 02210

  • Contact Phone:

    617.918.4323

Description:

UDR, Incorporated, the owner of 100 Pier 4 Boulevard in South Boston in conjunction with the Boston Redevelopment Authority (“BRA”) is pleased to announce three finalists in the solicitation for qualified civic and cultural users to occupy and program interior and exterior space located at 100 Pier 4 Boulevard.

The finalists are:

  • Celebrity Series of Boston
  • Steinway Society of Massachusetts
  • The Society of Arts and Crafts
The office of Mayor Martin J. Walsh has asked that the three finalists present their proposals in a public format on July 6 at 6PM in District Hall 75 Northern Ave, Boston.

The City of Boston’s long-standing planning objectives for the South Boston Waterfront District include a broad mix of uses tied together with an inviting pedestrian scale including continuous public access along the waterfront on the Harborwalk system. The mix of uses include commercial, residential, hotel, retail, open space and civic development. The waterfront and Harborwalk are to be enriched by parks, overlooks, civic uses and cultural facilities.
The call for civic and cultural facilities was underscored through the approval of the South Boston Waterfront Municipal Harbor Plan. Pursuant to that plan, 127,000 sf of new civic uses along the South Boston waterfront were authorized to balance the scale of new private development along the water’s edge.

The assemblage of open space and new civic and cultural facilities are the kind of special public destinations that will help transform the South Boston waterfront into a vibrant and popular year-round public destination.

The South Boston waterfront is evolving into a strong civic and cultural district with facilities located both along the water’s edge and within the neighborhood. These destinations include the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, Artists for Humanity, Midway Studios, Fort Point Artists community, Boston Children’s Museum, Boston Tea Party Museum, Moakley Federal Courthouse and the Institute for Contemporary Art.

This past April UDR, Inc. in conjunction with the BRA advertised a Request for Interest for 20,000 square feet of interior and exterior civic cultural space located at 100 Pier 4 Boulevard. 100 Pier 4 rises 21 stories above the Boston Seaport. 369 luxury apartment homes combine striking architecture, knockout views of Boston’s downtown and harbor, and superbly livable interior design. Property amenities include a high-end fitness center, resident lounge, mini-theater, 3rd floor sundeck with outdoor pool, cyber lounge/business center, parking garage and secured bike storage. In the spirit of the strong cultural and civic presence in the Innovation District, 100 Pier 4 features an original Dale Chihuly installation in the lobby on the ground floor. Ocean Prime, Cameron Mitchell’s flagship steak and seafood restaurant, is occupying the first floor.

The location of the civic and cultural space is well suited as an addition to the network of civic and cultural facilities in the area. The Pier 4 civic and cultural space is on the Harborwalk along the cove between Pier 4 and the World Trade Center, and also on the intersections of East Service Road, Seaport Boulevard and Northern Avenue, three roadways that play an important role in access to the waterfront.

The objective of this process was to attract letters of interest from Boston-based qualified civic and cultural operators to lease the designated civic and cultural space. Activation of the subject civic and cultural space will depend upon the identification of an appropriate civic and cultural space user acceptable to the UDR, Inc., BRA and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (“MassDEP”).

There were five formal proposals received and one request to partner with the selected civic/cultural tenant.

  1. Boston Cyberarts exhibition space for new media art and a performance / meeting area, technology incubation offices, and small classrooms
  2. The Celebrity Series of Boston proposes a music event venue.
  3. The Fort Point Arts Community proposes a yet to be determined artist space, possible gallery, work space, etc.
  4. The Society of Arts and Crafts proposes interior and exterior exhibition space, reference library, multi-purpose auditorium.
  5. The Steinway Society of Massachusetts proposes a small concert hall, music studios and exterior music facility.
Separately, the Artist Book Foundation is requesting to collaborate with whoever is selected to program the space at Pier 4. The Foundation proposes approximately 1,000 square feet of gallery and book store.

For more details please contact Richard McGuinness, Deputy Director for Waterfront Planning, Boston Redevelopment Authority, [email protected]