Columbia Crossing

The proposed project is an approximately 76,000 square foot, mixed-use building with 48 residential units and approximately 5,000 square feet of ancillary spaces including shared artists' workspace and space for commercial and other public uses plus parking. The project team is committed to development without displacement, ensuring that housing units created though this development are affordable to existing Dorchester residents. All 48 of the apartments in the development will be income-restricted with below-market rents. The Columbia Crossing project will complement and support the Upham’s Corner “Arts and Innovation District.” The project is particularly suited for artists, and 20% of the units are specifically designated for artists. The new building retains and embraces the iconic Dorchester Savings Bank as a prominent design feature including retaining its distinctive banking hall. An added transparent element referred to as the “Glow Box” contributes additional publicly accessible open space as a neighborhood amenity. The bank hall and "glow box" will provide approximately 3,500 square feet of civic, arts, and commercial space that will help to anchor Upham’s Corner as an arts and cultural district. A prominent gallery space to be known as “the Glow Box”, will feature high ceilings, glass walls, and flexible interior space, and will front along Columbia Road. This serves as the public face of the building, and will be available for public and community uses. Ample storage space is provided for artists living in the building who need more space than what is provided within their residential units. Together, these spaces will provide a complement to the Strand Theatre as the district’s anchor arts institution, adding variety to the performance and art display space available within the neighborhood.