Lease for $590M Fenway Center project approved
Developer John Rosenthal’s long-stalled Fenway Center project over the Massachusetts Turnpike is closer to a start date under a two-phase construction plan that will now begin with two mixed-use buildings on terra firma next to the Mass Pike.
The first two buildings, which would house 313 residential units and 67,000 square feet of commercial space, would build momentum for the entire $590 million project and make the more costly air-rights deck over the Mass Pike more financially attractive to future equity partners, according to the Newtonbased developer.
The air-rights deck between Brookline Avenue and Beacon Street would stretch over eight Mass Pike lanes in the second phase of development that’s slated to include 335 housing units, 160,000 square feet of commercial space and a public garage.
The state Department of Transportation board voted yesterday to authorize the execution of a 99-year lease with Rosenthal’s Meredith Management Corp. and development partner Gerding Edlen for the first phase of the 4.5-acre project, to be located next to the MBTA’s Yawkey commuter rail station.
The board approval comes after the state agency gave the developers a threemonth extension to finalize the agreement, which now is expected to be signed in September. The developers must pay the state $21 million by Sept. 30 and a $3 million penalty if they do not proceed with the second part of the project by Dec. 30, 2020.
Founded in 1951, Meredith Management has developed and managed several thousand residential apartment and condo units and millions of square feet of commercial property, according to the firm’s website.