Simon may build tower for residences at Copley Place

By Thomas C. Palmer Jr., Globe Staff  |  June 22, 2006

Simon Property Group Inc. of Indianapolis, which owns Copley Place, is considering adding to Boston's residential property boom by building a tower at the corner of Stuart and Dartmouth streets.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino said yesterday he had met with Simon at a recent convention of retailers in Las Vegas, where he was told about their plan.

``Simon has a proposal to put a building at that location," said Menino, though no plan has been submitted to the Boston Redevelopment Authority.

Simon, one of the largest operators of shopping centers in the country, is also considering a significant expansion of the Neiman Marcus department store at Copley Place, Menino said.

``They believe the market is there in the city of Boston for them to do bigger volume and have more displays of their product," he said.

Neiman Marcus stores are usually larger than the one at Copley Place, which is about 105,000 square feet . It underwent a $10 million renovation in 1994.

Simon could not be reached for comment yesterday.

A residential tower at Copley Place would be located near many shops and restaurants and across Dartmouth Street from the MBTA's Back Bay commuter-rail and subway station. It would be behind the Westin Copley Place Hotel.

Menino and others said that although the project could be considered part of Copley Place, it would have to go through a permitting process that would likely take at least two years.

Simon is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that develops, owns, and manages malls. It is involved with about 285 properties with about 200 million square feet of space in 39 states, and has properties abroad.

Simon's other locations in the region include Burlington Mall and South Shore Plaza in Braintree. It bought Copley Place in 2002. The Boston shopping center opened in the early 1980s.

Earlier this year, a two-story Barneys New York opened at Copley Place, featuring designer fashion and luxury goods. Barneys is the latest in a series of luxury retailers to target Boston's growing disposable income.

Jenn Abelson of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Thomas C. Palmer Jr. can be reached at tpalmer@globe.com.