The Boston Planning and Development Agency is exploring ways to repurpose District Hall in the Seaport — including its potential use as a library and for housing.
District Hall opened its doors in 2013 as part of a 10-year public-private partnership agreement to bolster the innovation community in the emerging Seaport neighborhood. The space was the result of a payment in lieu of property taxes (PILOT) agreement between the BPDA (formerly known as the Boston Redevelopment Authority), the Cambridge co-working space company CIC and an arm of the investment bank Morgan Stanley, which owned the property. The nonprofit Innovation Studio was contracted to manage operations and programming for the space.
In 2015, WS Development purchased District Hall as part of its acquisition of the Seaport Square project and honored the public-private partnership. The decade-long PILOT agreement ended on June 5, 2023.
Public records obtained by BostInno show that the BPDA is now looking at other ways District Hall could serve the community. Around the time the PILOT expired, the BPDA undertook a “South Boston Waterfront Library Needs Assessment” showing how “District Hall, in the heart of Seaport Square, is an ideal central location for a new cultural asset.
The push for a neighborhood library
The study concludes that District Hall’s 8,000 square feet of flexible spaces, like a kitchen, meeting rooms and auditorium, “can be repurposed for library needs.”
In a June 14 email discussing the study, Diana Fernandez, BPDA’s deputy chief of urban design, wrote: “One thing I think we should add is the idea of placing housing on the site. I think it could be an incredible addition and speak to the idea of stacking these issues. It would be incredible if we could deliver the library and affordable housing on top.”
Brittany Comak, assistant director of communications for the BPDA, wrote in an email to BostInno that “In the context of the transfer to WS, the BPDA completed a study to explore the possibility of converting the space to a library and housing. If we decide to pursue the idea with WS, we would of course begin a public process to engage the community and hear their thoughts.”
BPDA’s assessment referenced models that combined housing and library space, including existing buildings like the Mission Bay Branch, Senior Housing and Library in San Francisco and the Good Hope Public Library Branch in Milwaukee that contains a library and affordable housing.
The study also pointed to ongoing efforts in Boston to combine housing and libraries. The Asian Community Development Corp. is set to develop an affordable-housing building and Chinatown branch for the Boston Public Library on BPDA-owned parcels at Tyler and Hudson streets.
WS focuses on innovation center
In a July 14 email obtained by BostInno, Fernandez wrote that “There is interest from the land owner, especially the housing piece.”
WS has not publicly indicated in any filings that it is considering converting the space into a library or housing. Yanni Tsipis, senior vice president at WS, declined to comment on the BPDA study.
Tsipis pointed to a statement that WS provided to BostInno earlier this year regarding the end of the PILOT agreement. WS said it's committed to continuing the operations of District Hall as a hub for the innovation ecosystem for the next decade.
An updated development plan for the Seaport Square Project from 2017 shows that WS Development agreed to operate District Hall as an innovation center for an additional 10 years.
Referencing WS’ prior statement, Tsipis confirmed that District Hall would close at the end of 2023 for renovations and will reopen in the summer of 2024.
Southie convention center bid drama includes library
The city is looking at more than one way to bring a library to the South Boston waterfront.
Six acres near the convention center in South Boston are up for grabs, and one of the proposed development plans includes a library.
The Massachusetts Convention Center Authority is entertaining two bids for the space. One team led by Jon Cronin proposed 1.6 million square feet of new development, mostly lab and office space. It also includes public-facing features like a grocery store, food hall, a daycare, a film studio and a landing pad for futuristic “flying taxis.”
The rival bid led by John Hynes III’s Boston Global Investors includes 1.1 million square feet of development, with a lab building, hotel, grocery store and library on D Street and a life sciences building on E Street that includes biomanufacturing space.
The two teams submitted their bids not even two months ago, after their original proposals were thrown out earlier this year following criticism the MCCA was rushing the process.
Earlier this month, the process took another twist. The MCCA posted an agenda showing that its board of directors would vote on the provisional designation of a team led by Cronin. Within hours, the MCCA posted a revised agenda that removed the vote from the schedule but maintained that leadership would present its recommendation to the board. The chair of MCCA’s board then criticized the agency for its handling of these recent bids.
Sign up for The Beat, BostInno’s free daily innovation newsletter from BostInno reporter Hannah Green. See past examples here.
