E38 and E39 exterior restorations in progress
Buildings are part of Site 4 of the Kendall Square Initiative
Exterior restorations of buildings E38 and E39, which are currently undergoing renovations as part of Site 4 of the Kendall Square Initiative, are almost complete.
Site 4 construction began in January 2017 and is set to complete in summer 2020 with target occupancy beginning the following fall. E38 will contain ground-floor retail space; the Admissions office on the second floor; and a new Innovation and Entrepreneurship Hub on the five upper floors, according to MIT’s Capital Projects website.
E39 will include retail and office space, a graduate student residence tower with 454 housing units, and a 200-seat auditorium called the Forum.
Envisioned to make Kendall Square a gateway into MIT, the Kendall Square Initiative is a collection of six construction sites. The construction at Site 4 is a combination of renovation and new construction. “The exterior of E38 and E39 had minor alterations, but basically we are restoring it back to its original design,” Sonia Richards, program manager for Campus Construction in the Department of Facilities, said in an interview with The Tech.
Construction is running according to schedule, Richards said. Work is currently underway on the eighth and ninth floors of the graduate student tower. The completed tower will have thirty floors.