Developer proposes bus service between Nubian Square and its planned R&D building on the South Boston waterfront

Cronin Development has filed plans with the BPDA for an eight-story building on Drydock Avenue at Tide Street in the Raymond Flynn Marine Park that would feature the seemingly now obligatory life-sciences R&D space as well as space for an actual marine-industrial concern - Boston Ship Repair, which runs the large drydock that gave Drydock Avenue its name.

In its filing, Cronin said it is working with the Convention Center Authority, which already runs a convention center/Seaport shuttle, to create a new line to and from Nubian Square.

The first floor of the proposed building would include offices for Boston Ship Repair, as well as a lunch counter and some life-sciences lab space.

Floors 2 through 8 will be designed for life science lab tenants who will typically occupy 60% of the floor area for lab functions and 40% for office support functions.

To make way for the building, Cronin would raze the brick building now on the site, at 24 Drydock Ave.

Cronin says it would buy three 20-seat minibuses for the Nubian Square bus service. The buses would run every 10 to 15 minutes during workday rush hours and every 25 to 35 minutes at other times on work days.

This link, which would make constructive use of the underutilized Bypass Road and the Haul Road, will literally bridge the opportunity gap that currently exists between the Seaport and the neighborhoods where opportunity is needed.

The proposed shuttle route from Dudley Station to 24 Dry Dock Avenue would utilize Warren Street, Washington Street, Melnea Cass Boulevard, Massachusetts Avenue Connector, I-93 Frontage Road, South Boston Bypass, Massport Haul Road, Northern Avenue, Tide Street, and finally Dry Dock Avenue. The return route would follow roughly the same route with some minor adjustments to account for short stretches of one-way streets.

Cronin says the bus route is part of its commitment to "promote equity and social inclusion." In addition to the new bus service, Cronin has agreements with three non-profit groups - English for the New Bostonians, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay and Ron Burton Training Village - to provide workforce-development programs in the building.

Because the site is on a small peninsula, Cronin says it is mindful of the need to deal with flooding:

The project has been designed to meet the City of Boston 2070 projected sea level rise of 40 inches. Building utilities will be located above grade to protect against sea level rise and provide additional layers of resiliency ensuring the longevity and performance of the building into the future. The building is designed to accommodate a temporary flood barrier system to provide continuous protection at the building perimeter during a flood event. The first-floor elevation has been raised four feet to meet the projected sea level rise and accommodate a higher roadway elevation in the event the City raises the streets in the future. Interior finish materials at ground level and landscape materials are intended to be flood resistant.

The building would have no parking spaces, but Cronin says it expects to sign a contract with the BPDA subsidiary that runs the marine industrial park for paces in an existing garage on Northern Avenue.

The filing adds:

The proposed Project design responds to its unique context with a building that creates a decisive architectural and urban design statement. It will be eight stories high plus a mechanical penthouse and it will feature a boldly expressed framework and a façade with modulated areas of glass. The building’s massing is composed of two rectangular elements that fill the site’s irregular shape.

24 Drydock Ave. documents and calendar.