Zinc Residences

Zinc Residences is shaping the urban fabric of East Cambridge and Somerville by intersecting open-space living with a wide range of car-free connections. A short walk from the new MBTA Green Line Extension, the 2.4-acre housing development contains 392 residential suites in a 528,000 square feet structure. Zinc showcases a massing that complements its neighborhood—the building itself comprises three staggered and interconnected blocks of 15, 14, and 13 stories. 

The design is in tune with Zinc’s urban location. A system of multi-colored panels lend a sense of movement and vibrancy to the facade, while the random placement of the 120 balconies adds character and variety.

Zinc features over 30 unit designs that maximize efficiencies within the space.

Sound absorption and quality finishes take cues from the neighborhood’s boutique hotels and condominiums.

Onsite amenities include a fitness center with yoga studio, entertainment and media room; a high-end lobby with a bar; and a large garden terrace with fire pit, barbeque, and pavilion. 

Zinc offers a dramatic cityscape of Cambridge, Charlestown, and Boston.

Pedestrian connections provide easy access to the Cambridge waterfront and Charles River park land, as well as vibrant neighborhood shops and restaurants on Cambridge Street. 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 has a long relationship with SMMA’s portfolio. In 1966, we were commissioned to design a building for the Maytag-Gray Company, which ultimately was razed to make way for Zinc.

Our History

Residents enjoy instant access to the relocated Lechmere Station.

The station came online in 2022 as part of the Green Line relocation and extension project by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). Zinc’s Residents can now to Union Square, Tufts University, and downtown Boston in a matter of minutes.

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 

SMMA’s planning and permitting efforts involved the City of Cambridge, neighboring property owners, the MBTA, and the private 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:

|
  • 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. 

Special attention was given to positioning the development as a “connector” in East Cambridge. Pathways and roadways feed into the neighborhood—the site design encourages residents to venture to places like nearby Cambridge Street to enjoy the area’s cultural and retail offerings.

Share:

LinkedIn / Email / Copy Link
Next Project

Symphony Court

Read More

Footer Newsletter Form

Search
smma-slogan