“We’ve made a significant investment here and see it as a great place to live, work, and visit,’’ said Douglass Karp, the firm’s executive vice president. “This first building is going to be the gateway for the Pier 4 development.’’
The project, initially approved in 2005 and then slowed by the recession, adds to a flurry of building on the waterfront, which is finally beginning to attract new companies and retail stores after years of fits and starts. Streets that once felt desolate and industrial are now bustling with people seven days a week. New restaurants and bars have lines out their doors daily. Several other developers are pressing to begin construction.
“There’s a lot of excitement, and it’s really different from anything I’ve ever seen in my career,’’ said Mayor Thomas M. Menino, who has branded the area Boston’s “innovation district.’’
“Every day we get calls from businesses who want to move down there.’’
The question now facing the neighborhood is whether that momentum will again be sapped by the sputtering economy, the sudden decline of which could undermine demand for new stores, offices, and homes that have long been planned for the area.
Executives with Hanover and New England Development said they remain committed to moving forward.
David Hall, a development partner with Hanover, a national apartment builder, said the turmoil might even help improve the already strong market for rental units in the city. “The propensity for people to rent instead of own is shifting,’’ he said. “The economics support this deal.’’
Several developers in the neighborhood have either just begun construction or are seeking to get underway. The biggest breakthrough is at neighboring Fan Pier, where developer Joseph F. Fallon recently started construction on a pair of $800 million towers for Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc.
