**Cambridge Approves BioMed Realty and Blackstone Plan for Office-to-Lab Conversion at 350 Massachusetts Ave.**
The Planning Board of Cambridge, Massachusetts has approved a special permit for BioMed Realty and Blackstone to convert a largely vacant office property into state-of-the-art life sciences laboratory space. The building, located at 350 Massachusetts Avenue near the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), will be reconfigured to capitalize on shifting market demands that have emerged since the pandemic, favoring lab and research facilities over traditional office and retail uses.
According to the development proposal, the reimagined five-story building will dedicate 60% of its upper floors (levels two through five) to laboratory space and 40% to office use. The ground floor will continue to offer retail space, preserving an active streetscape. The building spans approximately 118,265 square feet and originally went up in the late 1990s. Although a facade refresh is part of the plan, BioMed Realty and Blackstone stated their intention to maintain the existing brick veneer and architectural arches to preserve the structure’s character.
“This proposed change will revitalize the building and better align with current market demands, which, particularly in Cambridge, favor life sciences and research spaces,” the developers noted in their submission to the board.
BioMed Realty acquired the property in 2021 from Brookfield Asset Management as part of a broader portfolio transaction. This conversion is the latest example of the region’s accelerating transition toward life sciences infrastructure, especially in innovation-driven hubs like Cambridge.
