UMass-Boston Construction Plan Remains Unchanged, Despite Economy

By Joshua Schubert

SOUTH BOSTON – Along the waterfront, construction sites remain abandoned. Further inland, an upscale hotel chain backed out of a deal to open a new location.

Still, the University of Massachusetts at Boston is pressing on with a plan to build two academic buildings and parking garages, while moving roads.

We are moving “full steam ahead,” said Steven Dansby, the university building authority’s chief financial officer.

Construction of new student residences is under consideration, said David MacKenzie, the building authority’s executive director.

The current science buildings and parking garage will be demolished once the new structures are completed. Demolition of the garage is scheduled for 2013.

“We haven’t yet gotten to the point of going to the market and borrowing,” Dansby said.

But MacKenzie is optimistic, sensing that the marketing has already reached its lowest point.

The bond market “is starting to loosen up,” he said.

“We expect that the overall bond market will return to near normalcy in six to nine months, which is about the time horizon in which we will need to go to market,” he said.

Vivien Li, a spokeswoman for the Boston Harbor Association, which has been focused on development in South Boston, said the cost of borrowing is not a developer’s only concern.

“The [price of] construction materials have gone up exponentially,” said Li, and
“everyone’s concerned about the instability in the market right now.”

But the new leadership is not expected to alter plans.

“The new chair and vice-chair are completely committed to our current schedule,” Dansby said.

The authority will take steps “to stabilize the existing [parking] garage for the period before it is demolished,” MacKenzie said.

The building authority is constructing plans for as far as 20 years into the future.