Proposals for Yard 21 Due Next Week

SOMERVILLE, MA-Proposals to develop 9.3-acres of city-owned property known as Yard 21 are due next week. And while no submissions have been filed yet, officials here are confident that the bidding will heat up shortly, as the property is a vital part of Taurus New England’s plans to develop Assembly Square Common, a proposed mixed-use development to be located on the 145-acre Assembly Square site.

Yard 21, a former railroad switching yard that the city acquired from the MBTA for $3.1 million last year, is one of three parcels that comprise the proposed Assembly Square Common. Taurus and its partner, Gravestar, already own the other two parcels.

City officials here are hopeful that the successful disposal of Yard 21 will revitalize the stalled development of Assembly Square Common and, in turn, the larger Assembly Square project.

Taurus’ plans for a Home Depot-anchored Assembly Square Mall, which wereapproved by city authorities last year, have been on hold for the past seven months because of a legal action against the development by a local resident. IKEA, the Swedish furniture chain, continues to revise its plans to win city support to develop a store on a 17-acre parcel it owns at Assembly Square.

City Mayor Dorothy Kelly Gay has stated that she would like a developer to build an MBTA Orange Line at Yard 21. The Somerville Redevelopment Authority is responsible for reviewing the proposals and choosing the winner.