Developer aims to end Government Center's lack of life-sciences labs by rejiggering garage redo

The developer that has been busy turning the 1960s's-era Government Center Garage into housing and offices says hold on a second, let's eliminate some of the housing and offices - and a hotel - and put up some life-sciences labs instead.

In a filing with the BPDA, the HYM Investment Group - which is also busy planning the massive Suffolk Downs development - says it now wants to build a single, 15-story life-sciences building where had once planned three other buildings with more traditional uses across Congress Street from the section of the Bulfinch Crossing project where it's already building two 40+ story buildings - one a residential tower that is now complete, the other the future home of State Street Bank, slated for completion in 2023.

The new building would have roughly the same square footage as the three buildings originally approved by the BPDA several years ago. Another building, also part of the original filing, is still planned to go up.

The new building would sit on a nearly 5-acre parcel bounded by New Chardon Street, the Rose Kennedy Greenway and an I-93 ramp, New Sudbury Street and Bowker Street and will feature roughly a one-acre public plaza and improvements to the Haymarket bus stop.

The building floats above an undulating soffit and canopy that offer an urban front porch to the plaza as an amenity. The canopy protects transit users entering and exiting the Haymarket Station headhouse nearby. The building lobby, which has entrances both to the west on Congress Street and to the east on the plaza, further activates the site by creating a through-block porosity. The building façade is striated in a series of horizontal bands that repeats the curvilinear design language of the plaza. The transparent glass enclosing the office lobby and ground-floor retail is inviting to the pedestrians. Warm tone materials make up the solid parts of the façade and pay tribute to the historic brick veneer of the surrounding North End and Blackstone Block neighborhoods. The glazing and solid materials of the façade are carefully balanced to provide not only great views but also responsible energy and environmental performance.

The plans discuss the new plaza and the improvements to the bus stop:

The activation of the East Parcel Site through rich vegetation will make the plaza feel like an extension of the Greenway.

Public gathering spaces will be concentrated to the north and south ends of the parcel. The northern area may feature stand-alone retail programming, which will activate the open space by catering to the needs of the office workers and residents of nearby communities. This component is also expected to accommodate some of the MBTA's programmatic needs for the adjacent bus station, such as a restroom for bus drivers and a manager's booth. The southern plaza area is expected to be more flexible and provide space for diverse seasonal programs such as food trucks and pop-up markets. There is also an opportunity for the existing art installation on-site, Sudden Presence, to be relocated within the East Parcel Project Site.

The Haymarket Bus Station features undulating bus shelters with PV panels and new seating. Elements such as a digital transit screen and ticket kiosks will be thoughtfully integrated into the overall design.

Govenment Center Garage Redevelopment filings and schedule.