Zinc Residences

Zinc—and Cambridge’s NorthPoint neighborhood, in general—is founding a new trend by intersecting open-space urban living with a wide range of car-free connections. Situated on 2.4 acres, the development serves as an entry point and western anchor of NorthPoint, comprising 528,000 gross square feet across 392 residential units. 

A modern, smart-growth project developed for today’s active urban renter, Zinc showcases a massing that complements its East Cambridge neighborhood; the building itself comprises three staggered and interconnected blocks of 15, 14, and 13 stories. 

The design is commensurate with its urban location, presenting a cementitious system of multi-colored panels, lending a sense of movement and vibrancy to the facade. The random placement of the 120 balconies adds character and variety, while accentuating the residential typology of the project. 

Zinc features over 30 unit-design variations, each made to maximize efficiencies within the space.

The units utilize optimal acoustics and sound absorption and feature quality finishes representative of the area’s boutique hotels and condominiums.  In addition, the residences feature a myriad of onsite amenities, such as a modern fitness center with yoga studio, entertainment and media room, high-end lobby with genius bar, and large garden terrace with fire pit, barbeque, and pavilion. 

Zinc offers cityscapes of Cambridge, Charlestown, and Boston.

The residences are connected to the NorthPoint Common and Cambridge waterfront. Pedestrian connections provide easy access to Charles River park land, contemporary malls, and Cambridge Street’s vibrant neighborhood shops and restaurants. The development also provides side-door access to bike paths that allow residents to comfortably reach Davis Square, MIT, Charlestown, and the North End.  

The project is one of the more remarkable in SMMA’s portfolio, given our own history with the site—in 1966, SMMA was commissioned to design a building for the Maytag-Gray Company, which ultimately was razed to make way for Zinc.

Residents are located steps from a recent transit extension.

The recent Green Line relocation and extension project by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) was considered during development.  Residents can quickly get to Union Square, Tufts University, and downtown Boston via from the relocated Lechmere Transit Station. The project achieves the core principles of a transit-oriented development by: 

  • Providing livable, sustainable growth, with better access to urban jobs and opportunities 
  • Realizing lower regional congestion, air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions 
  • Reducing transportation costs for residents, freeing up household income for other purposes 

Our planning and permitting efforts involved the City of Cambridge, neighboring property owners, the MBTA, and the NorthPoint development team. We worked closely with these and other stakeholders’ to coordinate their future developments, as direct abutters to the property.

Civil Engineering Efforts

Key civil engineering design efforts included:

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  • Researching and monitoring the City’s sewer and combined sewer systems, to maintain a gravity flow discharge to a separated portion of the system, and to locate and design drain/sewer separation projects for inflow and infiltration mitigation. This required securing a sewer connection permit from the Department of Environmental Protection. 
  • Designing an on-site drainage system that discharged a 98% phosphorous load reduction, to meet the City’s Charles River total-maximum-daily-load requirement. That system features both a temporary outlet discharge and a future outlet to the NorthPoint development system, and involved obtaining a land disturbance permit from the City of Cambridge. 
  • Designing an extension of Water Street to meet City standards, as well as to include all utilities and future utilities for NorthPoint, MBTA Lechmere Station, existing property owners, and city infrastructure. Our design also included the future integration of other streets, curb cuts, and an inter-city multi-use trail for recreation. 
  • Coordinating site layout, utilities, and a structured parking garage with the future elevated rail structure that will encroach onto the property site within two feet of the garage. 

Aligning the vision of the Zinc development team with that of the city and neighborhood was critical. From the outset, Zinc was planned as a showpiece for NorthPoint—something that residents would welcome and take pride in, and that would be memorable and impressive to visitors.

Special attention was given to positioning the development as a “connector” between NorthPoint and East Cambridge. Pathways and roadways that feed into the neighborhood were planned into the site considerations—overall, the design encourages residents to venture to places like Cambridge Street, so they may easily enjoy the cultural backdrop to this historic and vibrant area. 

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