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Community Corner

New Mixed Use Residential and Retail Project Breaks Ground in Barry's Corner

(Allston, Ma) – Leaders from Samuels & Associates, its partner Weiner Ventures, Harvard University, the City of Boston and the Allston community gathered on Friday, December 13, to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Barry’s Corner Retail and Residential Commons, a major step in the creation of a new, vibrant destination in North Allston.

The Barry’s Corner development, located at the corner of Western Avenue and North Harvard Street, will include 325 rental apartment units, 35,000 square feet of ground floor retail space, 180 below grade parking spaces and 40 on-street parking spaces on two new streets created within the project site, three open spaces within the project and a new park entrance to Smith Field. The new development reflects comprehensive input received during a nearly 18-month process of working with the community to identify the best uses, size and scope for the parcel.    

“As a company, we are focused on creating active spaces that meet community needs and build upon neighborhood strengths,” said Joel Sklar, president of Samuels & Associates. “This project serves multiple purposes – creating a link between the neighborhood and the University, enlivening the ground floor with neighborhood-friendly retail, adding open space and gathering places and incorporating enough residential density to support these goals.”  

The Barry’s Corner project is expected to create 500 construction jobs and 250 new long-term transit accessible permanent part and full time jobs.

“Thank you to Allston and its residents who have worked tirelessly to create a vision at this key neighborhood crossroads,” said Mayor Menino. “Barry’s Corner means new housing, commercial, and retail space that will energize this entire neighborhood and benefit every corner of the community for decades to come.”

Designed by the architecture firm Elkus Manfredi and to be constructed by Suffolk Construction, the project includes three public open spaces as well as enhancements to Smith Field, and features two residential buildings ranging in height from 6-9 stories on a single story retail podium.  

“When this project is complete, it will energize and transform Allston, creating and enhancing connections between Harvard and our neighbors,” said Harvard University President Drew Faust. “This groundbreaking is a significant step toward achieving our shared goal of a revitalized and vibrant Barry’s Corner – a place where campus and community will meet and grow together.”

About Samuels & Associates

Samuels & Associates specializes in creating mixed-use development projects, with a focus on transit oriented development, sustainability and community needs. With more than two decades of success in development, leasing and management of retail and residential project, the Samuels & Associates team is widely recognized for its effectiveness at placemaking. Active pedestrian environments, integrated retail, restaurant and open spaces, and quality residential and commercial spaces are hallmarks of Samuels developments.

About Weiner Ventures

Weiner Ventures is a real estate investment and development firm with a notable portfolio of large mixed-use projects in the Boston area. Weiner Ventures owns the former Museum of Natural History, now the new home of Restoration Hardware, and was recently designated by MassDOT to develop Turnpike Air Rights Parcels 12 and 15 in Boston’s Back Bay, along with Samuels & Associates. In addition, Weiner Ventures is a strategic investment partner with Samuels in multiple mixed-use projects in the Fenway, including Landmark Center, the under-construction “The Van Ness” residential and office building with anchor retailer Target, and the in-permitting “The Point” residential and retail building located at the gateway intersection of Boylston Street and Brookline Avenue. Weiner Ventures has served as a strategic partner on a wide variety of projects developed, owned, and managed by real estate development firms S. R. Weiner & Associates and W/S Development, including the Mandarin Oriental Boston, The Street in Chestnut Hill, MA, and The Derby Street Shoppes in Hingham, MA.

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