UMass Boston Wants To Bring Harvard Square To Dorchester

It’s an Olympic Village, it’s a soccer stadium, it’s … Harvard Square?

The UMass Building Authority issued a request for information Tuesday for ideas for the best use of the former Bayside Expo Center. The RFI looks to remake the 20-acre plot into a modern-day Harvard Square next to the UMass Boston campus, according to the Dorchester Reporter.

UMass bought the Bayside parcel for $18.7M in 2010 after it went into foreclosure. The Boston 2024 Olympics bid labeled the site as the ideal home for an Athlete’s Village. Once the bid was retracted, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft emerged as a potential developer, as he has long pursued a stadium in the urban core for his New England Revolution Major League Soccer franchise.

The site is near the JFK/UMass MBTA station and the old Boston Globe headquarters, which is expected to be acquired by Nordblom Co. in the fall. The UMass RFI reveals the college is also looking to ongoing mixed-used projects like Boston Landing and MIT’s Volpe Center redevelopment as inspiration.

Developers have until Oct. 6 to file responses to the nonbinding RFI.

Continue reading this story with a free account

Log in or register
Sign up for more articles like this
Subscribe to Bisnow's Boston Newsletters
Related Stories

Boston Property Owners Raise Alarms About Cost Of Electric-Building Push

King Of Prussia Pursues Stadium To Anchor $200M Mixed-Use Complex

Clarion Under Contract To Sell 18-Story Seaport Office Tower

How A New Financing Model Helps Spur More Mixed-Income Housing

Law Firm Relocating To South Station Tower: The Boston Deal Sheet

Boston Waterfront Property Planned For Hotel Project Put Up For Sale

BioMed Hands Boston Lab, Office Property To Lender

1200 White St., Atlanta's Newest Creative Hub, Is Transforming The West End

Blackstone's Industrial Arm Sells Revere Warehouse For $45M

Affordable Housing Developer Plans $63M Newton Project: The Boston Deal Sheet

Pharma Company Moving Headquarters From Suburbs To Downtown Boston

Plans For Colorado's Newest Private Golf Course Revealed: The Denver Deal Sheet