Suffolk Downs: The Largest Construction Project in Massachusetts History
Image: HYM Investment Group / AIA
If you want to understand the scale of what's being built in Greater Boston right now, start here.
Suffolk Downs — the former horse racing track straddling East Boston and Revere — is the largest private development in Massachusetts history. When complete, it will deliver 16.2 million square feet of space across 161 acres: over 10,000 residential units, 5.2 million square feet of office and lab space, 500,000 square feet of retail, hotel space, and 40 acres of public open space. The total construction cost runs into the billions.
It is, by any measure, a generational project.
Where it stands right now
Construction has been progressing steadily, though not at the pace originally envisioned when the project won city approvals several years ago. High interest rates and elevated construction costs have slowed the broader multifamily pipeline across Greater Boston, and Suffolk Downs has not been immune to that reality.
That said, real momentum is visible on site. The first residential building, Amaya — an eight-story, 475-unit apartment complex near the Beachmont Blue Line station — opened in 2024 and has achieved strong leasing results. Portico, the second residential building on the Revere side of the site at 473 units with 33,000 sq ft of ground-floor retail, broke ground in December 2025 and is actively under construction, with an opening targeted for early 2028.
Beyond housing, work is underway on The Amp, Suffolk Downs' new outdoor amphitheater, targeting a Summer 2026 opening. Site improvements are also active at 619 Winthrop Avenue, including a new public plaza, stormwater upgrades, and improved access to Beachmont Station — work expected to run through late 2026.
Developer HYM Investment Group has also signalled plans to advance the next phase later this year, including a further apartment building and a 160-room hotel.
The construction complexity
Suffolk Downs isn't just big — it's complex in ways that make it genuinely interesting from a construction standpoint.
The project is being built out in phases across two municipalities (Boston and Revere), each with their own permitting requirements and political dynamics. It sits adjacent to active MBTA infrastructure at two Blue Line stations, requiring careful coordination around transit access throughout construction.
The team behind the build is significant. General contractors include Suffolk Construction and others across different phases and components. The developer, HYM Investment Group, is leading master planning and overall execution, with National Real Estate Advisors as a key investment partner. The architect lineup includes The Architectural Team (TAT), ICON Architecture, Elkus Manfredi, and Prellwitz Chilinski Associates, among others.
On the earthwork side, McCourt Construction Company and W.L. French Excavating Corporation have been active on Phase 1 and Beachmont Square. Leggat McCall Properties is also involved across development components.
Why it matters for Boston construction
Suffolk Downs represents a meaningful pipeline of construction work in a market that is otherwise seeing limited new high-rise starts. For construction professionals in the Boston area — PMs, Superintendents, Estimators — it is one of the few projects at genuine scale moving forward right now, and it is expected to remain active for well over a decade.
The project is also a proving ground for large-scale urban development on previously industrial or underutilised land — a model that is increasingly relevant as the availability of buildable sites within city limits continues to shrink.
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