This newspaper has covered extensively the rise and fall of developer Sal Lupoli’s plans for the Hamilton Canal Innovation District in Lowell.
An agreement reached in 2020 for phased construction projects on five of the 11 remaining HCID properties, including an iconic 13-story high-rise with commercial, retail and residential uses, had been reduced to a single five-story wood-frame building when Lupoli came before a City Council subcommittee in April of this year.
The only building Lupoli’s company actually constructed, an eight-story, 550-space parking garage worth $26 million, now competes with the city’s HCID parking garage.
The Chelmsford native cited a changing construction environment due to exploding labor costs and interest rates as the main reason for his drastically reduced HCID proposal.
However, it should also be noted that during this period of “difficult” construction conditions, Lupoli Companies was actively involved in the permitting process for King Street Common, the redevelopment of the former IBM campus on King Street in Littleton, and had also committed to being the lead developer of the $160 million Haverhill redevelopment project, which included the creation of 370 market-rate apartments and the provision of 50,000 square feet of mixed-use space.
In fact, on the same night that Lupoli presented his slimmed-down Hamilton Canal Innovation District plan to the Lowell City Council subcommittee, his representatives presented a more ambitious revision of the company’s King Street Common project to the Littleton Planning Board, an expanded plan that now called for a 150-room boutique hotel.
In addition to reusing existing buildings on the site, Lupoli Companies’ King Street Crossing project (550 King Street, just off Interstate 495) will convert an additional 2.3 million square feet into multi-use buildings and outdoor community spaces.
The project also includes the construction of a new city hall building in Littleton.
And as a recent MassLive report shows, Lupoli Companies is primarily focused on the 46-acre redevelopment project in Littleton.
The company announced last week that it had signed one of the largest leasing deals this year in the region with HIPER Global, a global computer hardware manufacturer.
Of the 600,000 square meters of office and laboratory space planned for the project, HIPER Global has leased 72,500 square meters for its new US headquarters.
The world-class electronic hardware manufacturer, which already has offices in North Andover, Marlborough and Atlanta, Georgia, is working with leading technology and defense companies around the world on “computer solutions.”
According to the team at Lupoli Companies, there has been less activity in leasing flexible and office space in “recent years.” They said this makes HIPER’s commercial lease of this square footage one of the largest deals in the area this year.
“We are very pleased to welcome HIPER Global as our tenant in Littleton,” said Sal Lupoli, CEO and president of King Street Crossing site developer Lupoli Companies, in a press release.
Jim Reinold, CEO of HIPER Global, said King Street Crossing is a “perfect fit” for the company’s “growth and innovation.” He added that his presence at the facility will be “more than just office space” and will foster a relationship between community and technology.
Plans for the massive multi-use complex also include 1,089 residential units, the aforementioned 150-room flagship hotel, and outdoor public green space for events and gatherings.
115,000 square feet will be used for restaurants and retail space, and 90,000 square feet will be reserved for labs and research development. Walkable pedestrian pathways are expected to wind through the campus.
King Street Crossing is accessible from Exit 80 on I-495 and is just minutes from the MBTA’s Fitchburg Line, the commuter rail service to Boston.
Phase 1 of the project is scheduled to begin in 2025 and be completed by 2026, according to the site’s master plan approved by the Littleton Planning Board in June.
The first phase includes the construction of two buildings and a parking garage with 740 square meters of retail, restaurant and commercial space as well as 287 residential units.
The expansion of the entire complex, which is scheduled to be completed by 2037, will comprise seven construction phases, according to city documents.
According to the company, now recognized by the Boston Business Journal as the state’s second-largest commercial developer, King Street Crossing is also expected to be a driver of the local economy by creating “thousands” of jobs. A similarly large Lupoli project – the Riverwalk project in Lawrence – created 2,000 jobs.
Since last week, Lupoli has been negotiating with “several other potential tenants” for the site. Broker CBRE and tenant broker Cushman and Wakefield handled the deal for HIPER Global and Lupoli.
As for the fate of Lowell’s downgraded Hamilton Canal Innovation District, that City Council subcommittee directed the city’s Planning and Development Department to draft Lupoi’s proposed zoning changes and amend the land development agreement so the proposal can be brought to the full City Council for a vote.
If the City Council rejects Lupoli’s alternative plan, can Lowell have better prospects with another master developer, given HCID’s dismal track record in this regard?
Two Lupoli projects – only a few kilometers apart, but miles apart in scope and vision.
