Agency Scraps Bidding Process for South Boston Parcels

On the eve of a critical meeting, the bidding process for prime land in South Boston is being dismantled altogether, irking both developers in the running.

Gloria Larson, the interim executive director of the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority, called for the agency’s board to hold off on plans to develop six acres in the Seaport area, the Boston Globe reported. She informed the two contenders for the land two days ahead of a board meeting.

The parcels on D and E Streets sit in the shadow of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

When Larson took over the authority, she brought in a law firm to examine the bidding process of the lots. That probe found that one bidder, Cronin Development, received documents not seen by another bidder, Boston Global Investors, or the public. Among the information seemingly shared privately was the two main bidders’ financial offers.

“What we found: that MCCA leadership did not maintain appropriate controls,” Larson told the Globe. There was no evidence of intentional misconduct, she added.

Larson’s predecessor first put the property out for bidding in November 2022, but Gov. Maura Healey’s administration has been concerned about the process, which has had its share of fits and starts. Cronin and BGI were the only two bidders the first time around, but concerns about whether it was rushed led to another process, again resulting in Cronin and BGI in pole positions.

Cronin appeared poised to win the bidding process in November, only for the board chair to block the move, leading to the previous MCCA executive director’s departure.

Both developers’ plans featured office and lab space across more than 1 million square feet of development, according to the Boston Business Journal. Neither proposed featured housing.

It’s unclear when — or if — the bidding process for the land will restart. Larson is calling for a larger evaluation of all of the authority’s properties.

Jon Cronin, principal of Cronin Development, said he was “disgusted” by the scuttled bidding process, denying that the MCCA provided his team with inside information. BGI CEO John Hynes also said he was disappointed, but pledged to bid on the land again if it’s offered.

— Holden Walter-Warner