Assembly Square

Assembly Square is a neighborhood in Somerville, Massachusetts, United States. It is located along the west bank of the Mystic River, bordered by Ten Hills and Massachusetts Route 28 to the north and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston to the south. The district's western border runs along Interstate 93. Located 2.5 mi (4.0 km) from downtown Boston, the 143 acres (580,000 m²) parcel is named for a former Ford Motor Company plant that closed in 1958.^[1]

The area is home to Assembly Row, a 45-acre (180,000 m²) mixed-use, smart growth development that broke ground in April 2012 and opened in 2014 saddling a main street of the same name. It includes retail outlets, restaurants, residential space, office and research and development space, a 12-screen cinema and a 200-room hotel. Other amenities include a marina, a revitalized waterfront park, bike paths and other green space.

The area lies on the junction of Interstate 93 and Massachusetts Route 28, and is served by public transit via the MBTA'sOrange LineAssembly station^[2] and bus route 90.^[3]

In the 17th century, the southern bank of the Mystic River, a low-lying tidal marsh and wetlands area bordered by uplands further south in the current Ten Hills neighborhood, was avoided by the early settlers because of poorly draining clay soils. The highland site on Ten Hills offered better agricultural land and the first Governor of Massachusetts, John Winthrop, chose it for the site of his farmstead. The location of the Ten Hills site on the Mystic River made it a natural choice for the transport of people and goods, and the first seagoing vessel built in this region was launched from there.^[4][5]

Trade and transport led to an expansion of the area’s economy and population. The construction of the Middlesex Canal at the end of the 18th century accelerated this process. By the early 1800s, there were 10 shipyards along the Mystic River. The area had developed into a transportation corridor from Boston to the region. At mid-century, rail surpassed the canal as the most efficient mode of transport and the construction of two railroads across Somerville in 1845 and 1854, along with the opening of a station at Sullivan Square, brought even more development to the area.^[6]

It was not until the construction of the McGrath Highway in 1925 that full industrial development, albeit short-lived, took hold in Somerville. The Ford Motor Company built an assembly plant here in 1926, which would, over time, lend Assembly Square its name. Additionally, the Boston and Maine Railroad also owned large tracts of land in the district and the land was criss-crossed by spur tracks. With both road and rail connections, the strong transportation infrastructure was a major draw, and other industries soon followed, including First National Stores, a retail supermarket chain, which opened a grocery manufacturing and distribution center in the area.^[7]

Within the next 30 years, Assembly Square remained one of the largest employment centers in the region. However, in 1958, as a result of the failure of the Edsel Division of the Ford Motor Company and the change in Ford’s manufacturing strategies, the Assembly Plant was closed. It hurt the area both economically and physically, taking away hundreds of jobs and leaving a vast complex of empty manufacturing buildings. First National moved into the Assembly Plant site shortly after Ford's departure.^[8]

By the late 1950s and early 1960s, industries were already making the choice to move to suburban locations along newly constructed highways, where land costs were lower. The construction of the elevated Northern Expressway portion of Interstate 93 in the 1970s segregated the uses on both sides of the highway and significantly reduced its access and visibility from the surrounding areas. In 1976, First National moved its operations from the site to Windsor Locks, Connecticut, marking the end of Assembly Square as a major industrial employment center.^[9][10]

Nach der Schließung von First National erwarb die Stadt Somerville das Gelände ^{[ 11 ]} und erklärte es später zum Sanierungsgebiet. Um die Wiederbelebung des Gebiets zu fördern, wurde der „Assembly Square Revitalization Plan“ verabschiedet, ein 20-jähriger Stadterneuerungsplan. ^{[ 12 ]} Im Rahmen dieses Plans verlagerte sich der Schwerpunkt des Gebiets auf den Einzelhandel. Kernstück war die Umwandlung des ehemaligen Automobilwerks in ein Einkaufszentrum, die Assembly Square Mall. Das 20 Hektar große Projekt wurde von der ortsansässigen East Bay Development Corporation geleitet und der Spatenstich erfolgte im September 1978. ^{[ 10 ]} Das Einkaufszentrum eröffnete 1981 mit über 33.000 m² ^{Verkaufsfläche} und den Ankermietern Kmart und Jordan Marsh . ^{[ 13 ] [ 14 ]} Es ähnelte vielen kleineren Einkaufszentren im „Hantel“-Stil jener Zeit, mit einem Hauptgeschäft an jedem Ende, einem geraden Gang dazwischen und einem Food-Court in der Mitte. Auf dem Gelände wurden außerdem ein Kino mit sechs Sälen und ein vierstöckiges Bürogebäude errichtet. Zwei neue Straßen, Assembly Square Drive und New Road, wurden gebaut, um die Erreichbarkeit zu verbessern. ^{[ 11 ]}

Trotz fehlendem Gesamtplan und unzureichender Finanzierung wagte Assembly 1992 mit der Eröffnung eines Home Depot auf einem 4,5 Hektar großen  Grundstück neben dem Einkaufszentrum einen wichtigen Schritt und brachte damit erstmals einen großflächigen Einzelhandelsmarkt in die Gegend. Die Hauptmieter des Einkaufszentrums blieben bis 1996 unverändert, als Macy's die Jordan Marsh-Kette übernahm und das Kaufhaus 1997  schloss. Bis 1999 war das Einkaufszentrum bis auf Kmart und Gebäude 19 , das im Jahr zuvor in die ehemaligen Räumlichkeiten von Macy's/Jordan Marsh umgezogen war , geschlossen .

1998 wurde die Mystic View Task Force, eine Bürgerinitiative, gegründet, um die Interessen der Anwohner bei zukünftigen Projekten im Assembly Square zu vertreten. Aus dem Forum ging die Vision einer fußgängerfreundlichen Mischnutzungsbebauung hervor, die 30 zusätzliche Hektar nutzbarer Freifläche, über 30.000 vielfältige Arbeitsplätze und über 30 Millionen US-Dollar an neuen Nettosteuereinnahmen generieren sollte. Mystic View legte Beweise dafür vor, dass der Assembly Square, entwickelt als Büroviertel mit ergänzenden Einzelhandels- und Wohnflächen, diese Ziele problemlos erreichen könnte. Um dies zu realisieren, durften jedoch die großen Einzelhandelsketten, die die Diskussionen um den Assembly Square maßgeblich dominiert hatten, keine Option sein. ^{[ 15 ]}

In 1999, the internationally known Swedish home furnishings store IKEA purchased two former industrial sites on the Mystic River waterfront. IKEA obtained permits for its proposed retail store; however, the permits were challenged in court by community members opposed to a "big box" use on the waterfront, with the result that redevelopment of the site was stalled for a number of years.

Aerial photo of Assembly Square during its redevelopment in 2012

View of the Assembly Square Marketplace in 2012

Assembly Row, the neighborhood's central artery, pictured in 2024

In 2000, the Somerville Redevelopment Authority (SRA) acquired title to a 9.3-acre former railroad parcel in Assembly Square and issued an RFP for developers. At the same time, the City initiated an extensive public planning process, producing the "2000 Planning Study" which set out a new vision for Assembly Square as a 24-hour mixed use district with residential, retail, office, cinema, restaurant, hotel, and recreational open space uses. In 2002, the SRA and the City adopted a 20-year extension of the urban renewal plan with the goal of transforming Assembly Square into the mixed-use district described in the 2000 Planning Study. Assembly Square was rezoned to promote the mixed-use concept, and design guidelines and a design review committee were created to provide additional assistance.

In 2005, Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRIT), a Maryland-based real estate investment trust and developer, purchased the defunct Assembly Square Mall along with other properties in Assembly Square. FRIT quickly redeveloped the existing mall into the Assembly Square Marketplace.

Later in 2006, Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone aided in bringing FRIT and IKEA together to come up with a feasible redevelopment plan consistent with the new vision. FRIT and IKEA agreed to trade parcels, moving IKEA inland from its initial site and leaving the waterfront open for FRIT to create pedestrian friendly, mixed-use development. The new plan, developed by Street-Works Studio LLC for Federal Realty, integrated residential, office, retail and open space across the site and embraced the waterfront for public use and a future transit stop. Street-Works Studio worked with project-wide consultants to ensure phasing, retail connectedness, developed design guidelines, and brought an important human-scale aesthetic to the project, thinking of the "whole" and every user experience, not just on a block by block basis. This new plan was welcomed by those who had previously opposed the IKEA development. The land swap was executed in October 2009 solidifying the vision of the district.

Nach über zehn Jahren Planung zog sich IKEA im Juli 2012 offiziell aus dem Assembly-Square-Projekt zurück und erklärte, die Filiale in Stoughton reiche für den Bedarf des Bundesstaates aus. ^{[ 16 ]} Im darauffolgenden Jahr wurde bekannt gegeben, dass FRIT das 49.000 m² große Grundstück von IKEA erwerben würde ^. Durch diesen Verkauf ist FRIT nun fast vollständig Eigentümer des Assembly-Square-Geländes. ^{[ 17 ]}

Nach zweijähriger Vorbereitung des ehemaligen Industriebrachgeländes erfolgte im April 2012 der Spatenstich für zwei Wohngebäude, eine neue Hauptstraße und einen neuen Bahnhof der MBTA (Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority) . ^{[ 18 ]} Die Wohngebäude, Avalon at Assembly Square (195 Wohneinheiten) und AVA Somerville (253 Wohneinheiten), wurden von Elkus Manfredi Architects entworfen und von AvalonBay Communities Inc., einem US-amerikanischen Immobilieninvestmentfonds und Verwalter von Luxuswohnungen, entwickelt. ^{[ 19 ] [ 20 ]}

Sports Authority schloss 2016 nach der Insolvenz der Kette und wurde 2018 durch Burlington ersetzt. AC Moore schloss ebenfalls 2016 und wurde 2017 durch Trader Joe's ersetzt, 2019 kam Xfinity hinzu. ^{[ 21 ] [ 22 ]}

Im November 2019 wurde Kmart von Sears geschlossen , womit nach 38 Jahren auch der letzte der ursprünglichen Ankermieter des Marktplatzes verschwand. ^{[ 23 ]}

Der Assembly Square Marketplace ist ein Einzelhandelspark mit gemischter Nutzung im Assembly Square. Von den 1980er Jahren bis Mitte der 2000er Jahre war er ein überdachtes Einkaufszentrum namens Assembly Square Mall. Die geplanten Erweiterungen erfolgen in sechs Phasen, wodurch der Komplex zu einem überregionalen Einkaufszentrum aufgewertet wird. Bis zur Fertigstellung des Projekts im Jahr 2011 sollen auf einer Fläche von 269.000 ^m² (66,5 Acres ) Büro-, Einzelhandels-, Wohn-, Forschungs- und Entwicklungs-, Gastronomie- und Unterhaltungsflächen entstehen. ^{[ 24 ]}

Assembly Square Mall opened in 1980.^[25] The mall building was previously occupied by Somerville Assembly, a Ford Motor Company factory,^[25] and was later used as a supermarket distribution center before its conversion to a mall.

The 322,000-square-foot (29,900 m²) mall was originally anchored by a 79,000 sq ft (7,300 m²) Jordan Marsh and a 95,637 sq ft (8,885.0 m²) Kmart. These anchor stores remained the same until 1996, when Macy's acquired Jordan Marsh.^[25] Macy's closed the store in 1997, and by 1999, it was replaced with Building 19.

Shortly after Building 19 opened, the mall was closed off except for Building 19 and Kmart. The vacant mall and Building 19 spaces were gutted and reconfigured in 2005. The Kmart store remained in place.

The new Assembly Square Marketplace was completed in early 2006. The area around the mall will be redeveloped as an "urban village"-style development.^[26]

Healthcare system Mass General Brigham occupies a prominent office building on the southern end of Assembly Row

The property owner and lead developer for both Assembly Row and Assembly Square Marketplace is Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRIT), a Maryland-based real estate investment trust.^[27]

The first Legoland Discovery Centre in New England and seventh in the United States is located on the property. The indoor family entertainment center based on Legoconstruction toys is housed in a 44,000 sq ft (4,100 m²) space opened in Spring 2014. Other brands announced to be moving into the neighborhood's retail spaces early on included Nike, Le Creuset, Brooks Brothers, Chico's, J.P. Licks, and AMC Theatres.^[28]

In December 2013 the state's largest hospital system, Mass General Brigham, known at the time as Partners HealthCare, announced it would consolidate administrative operations from 14 sites in eastern Massachusetts and move 4,500 non-hospital employees into 700,000 sq ft (65,000 m²) of a new office building. While the company’s executive headquarters would remain in Boston, offices throughout the region, including locations in Charlestown, Wellesley and Needham closed.^[29]

Other offices at Assembly Square include SmartBear Software's headquarters^[30] as well as the North American headquarters for German athletic brand Puma.^[31]

On the north side of Assembly Square is the Mystic River. From Route 28 to the MBTA Orange Line and Haverhill Line tracks is the waterfront Sylvester Baxter Riverfront Park. This was redeveloped as part of Assembly Square construction, and enlarged with a land swap between FRIT and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).^[32] DCR also owns the existing Draw 7 Park, which lies on a narrow strip next to the Mystic River as it curves southward between the Orange Line and the Newburyport/Rockport Line Commuter Rail tracks.

FRIT has also committed to building a pedestrian underpass to connect Baxter Park to the Somerville side of the Mystic River Reservation (the next segment being known as the Shore Drive Parklands).^[32]

• Assembly Row project site
• Developer website
• City of Somerville page
• MBTA Project for Assembly Square Orange Line stationArchived 2014-07-08 at the Wayback Machine
• Deadmalls.com writeup