P-3 Partner’s Tremont Crossing receives Boston Planning & Development Agency Article 80 approval

Tremont Crossing - Roxbury, MA

Roxbury, MA The P-3 Partners’ Tremont Crossing mixed-use development project received Article 80 approval from the Boston Planning & Development Agency (BPDA) board.

The 1.7 million s/f $500 million Tremont Crossing project will include destination and neighborhood retail, entertainment, residential, office and cultural components featuring the new home for the Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists (NCAAA). The development, located on 7.6 acres of BPDA-owned land, is named for a place where “Commerce and Culture Connect.”

Tremont Crossing is being developed by P-3 Partners, which is made up of Feldco Development Corp. and Elma Lewis Partners (ELP), a development entity formed by the NCAAA.

BPDA Board approval is a major milestone for any large-scale development in the city. The thorough and complex Article 80 process involves public input, expert design approval and detailed community-impact analysis.

The board approval followed a show of support for the project in recent weeks by the Roxbury Strategic Master Plan Oversight Committee as well as the Project Review Committee, the two community boards charged with reviewing the project. Tremont Crossing also received approval on Jan. 3 from the Boston Civic Design Commission. The approvals followed many public meetings, comment periods and project updates over the last several years.

Barry Feldman, president of Feldco, said, “This is an important milestone for our project and such a proud moment for our family. We have worked diligently and patiently, hand in hand, for more than six years with our partners at Elma Lewis, the city of Boston, the BPDA and all of our friends and neighbors in the community to get to this point. I am very grateful for everyone’s determination and support, especially that of mayor Marty Walsh, who saw this entire project as a Roxbury and city of Boston benefit from day one.”

Since 2011, the family-run Feldco team and Edmund Barry Gaither, director and curator of the NCAAA, have worked with state and city administrations and agencies, as well as the greater Roxbury community to plan and refine the uses and design of the project that will include 300,000 s/f of destination/entertainment retail, 100,000 s/f of smaller retail/restaurants, 108,000 s/f of office space, 727 apartments, 1,371 parking spaces and, the cornerstone of it all, a 31,000 s/f NCAAA museum. Additionally, the project will feature a large plaza with public art, outdoor dining, weekly events and food trucks.

Brian Golden, director of the BPDA, said, “Tremont Crossing responds to the needs of the community by bringing good jobs, much needed affordable housing and a cultural and entertainment destination to Roxbury. We are pleased to see this important project, a partner to the Whittier Choice Neighborhood Initiative, move forward and we will continue to work with the community to ensure that it serves the neighborhood and our city for generations to come.”

Gaither said, “This project has been a labor of love for me, the NCAAA board and the community that was inspired by the vision of Elma Lewis. This moved us toward realizing the promise of a bright, uplifting and secure future for our children and posterity. We look forward to sharing the Roxbury that we love with the world through art and culture.”

The $14 million museum and educational center will be awarded debt-free to the NCAAA with its operational funding endowed by Elma Lewis Partners’ financial interest in the income-producing portion of the project.

BJ’s Wholesale Club was the first lease signed for the project more than a year ago. It will anchor the destination retail on the second-floor of one of four buildings with additional retail tenants including a 10-screen movie theater, value-based department store, pharmacy and a full-service fitness center.

The Tremont Crossing project is located at the corner of Whittier and Tremont Sts., with nearby public transportation access at Ruggles Station. The city-owned land parcel is also known as Parcel P-3, across the street from Boston Police Headquarters and Northeastern University.

Feldco, a family-owned and operated business, has been active in developing, owning and managing realty investments for more than 48 years. The Company has extensive experience in all property types, with more than 100 major shopping centers and malls throughout the United States in its development portfolio over the years. The Company also has developed many office buildings from New York to Florida for such tenants as the N.Y. Telephone Co., AT&T, the Veteran’s Administration, N.Y. Life Insurance Company and many other major corporations. Within the residential sector, Feldco’s projects have ranged from ground-up construction of rental residences and condominiums to the rehabilitation of historic buildings.

ELP is an entity created by the National Center for Afro-American Artists for the purpose of the Tremont Crossing development. The mission of the non-profit NCAAA is to preserve and foster the cultural arts heritage of people of African descent worldwide through arts teaching and the presentation of professional works in all fine arts disciplines. The NCAAA is the largest independent black cultural arts institution in New England. Since 1969, the NCAAA has operated the Museum for the NCAAA in Roxbury, MA. The Museum presents a wide range of historical and contemporary exhibitions in many media, including painting, sculpture, graphics, photography and decorative arts. It has presented hundreds of exhibitions, including many co-presented with the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.