LNR Property LLC has closed on the purchase of the final 830 acres of land from the U.S. Navy at Southfield, Mass., which will serve as the site for Southfield, a $2.5 billion planned community and transit-oriented development.
Formerly the site of the South Weymouth Naval Air Station, SouthField will feature 2,855 units of housing and 2 million sq. ft. of commercial and retail space. The development will also include more than 1,000 acres of parks and open space, a links-style golf course and a $20 million indoor/outdoor sports and recreation complex.
“The purchase will allow for the full vision of SouthField as the premier smart growth community in the country to be realized here in Massachusetts,” said Kevin Chase, regional vice president of LNR Property LLC, in a statement. “SouthField’s first residents have already moved in, and a dynamic neighborhood is quickly taking shape. SouthField will serve as an economic engine for the entire region for generations to come, bringing with it thousands of jobs, new industries and a vibrant residential community.”
The project will is expected to provide 6,000 construction jobs and 4,000 permanent jobs.
LNR Property’s investment is half of a public-private partnership that has spurred development on the base.
Gov. Deval Patrick’s administration has invested $45 million to construct the East-West Parkway, a regional transit improvement connecting Routes 3 and 18, and the federal government has committed $8 million for other transit improvements.
Other pieces of the development include SouthField Highlands, a residential neighborhood located near the on-site South Weymouth commuter rail station that is currently under development.
Construction has also begun on 226 units of studio and one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments being developed by John M. Corcoran & Co.; 60 single-family, townhouse and garden court homes are currently being built by custom homebuilders Whitman Homes and Interactive Building Group; and Rogerson Communities is scheduled to begin construction in 2012 on the 220-unit William B. Rice Eventide senior independent living and skilled nursing facility. These four builders will bring 500 units of housing, valued at over $130 million, to the market in the next two years.