2 Harbor Life Sciences Center is a 500,000-square-feet development in Boston’s Seaport District. Situated on four acres in the South Boston Waterfront, the ten-storey building provides a mix of lab spaces and office facilities. Designed by Handel Architects in collaboration with STUDIO ENÉE, this LEED Platinum-certified building draws inspiration from the surrounding marine industrial architecture. A high-performance and healthy hub, 2 Harbor Life Sciences Center is pursuing WELL Platinum Certification™ and meets the “9 Foundations” of a healthy building as defined by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Architectural design and flexibility of 2 Harbor Life Sciences Center
The facade of 2 Harbor Life Sciences Center consists of corrugated metal panelling with torqued copper-coloured horizontal and vertical metal bands. Large triple-glazed windows flood the interior with natural daylight and create a peaceful working environment.
The building is designed for maximum flexibility. A centralised core with perimeter air distribution improves the adaptability and efficiency of 2 Harbor Life Sciences Center. This approach minimises conflicts between building services, structural components, and tenant fit-outs, while also maintaining generous ceiling heights and simplifying any future reconfigurations of lab and office space.
One particular site challenge included the building’s location over the Ted Williams Tunnel, which travels beneath Boston Harbor. Restricted by a two-storey construction limit, this portion of the site was reimagined as a lush terrace, blending architecture with the surrounding environment.
Building features and amenities
The building’s ten storeys include one below-grade parking level, ground-floor retail and service space, upper lab and office floors, and a mechanical penthouse. There is a 60/40 spilt between lab and office space. Amenities include a lobby lounge and bar, conference centre, outdoor terrace, fitness and wellness centres, and tenant lounge. There are bike storage facilities, parking spaces, and EV charging stations in the parking level.
STUDIO ENÉE was responsible for the interior design and FF&E for the core and amenity spaces.
Flood resilience and design features
The broad facade of the building faces Gateway Plaza, a new green space that stretches across the South Boston Waterfront from Seaport Square.
2 Harbor Life Sciences Center has been designed to withstand future sea level rise and potential flooding. In line with Boston’s 2050 flood design standards, the ground floor is elevated approximately 4 feet above the current sidewalk level, with both interior and exterior ramps providing access to this higher datum. Deployable flood gates are installed at entrance doors and garage openings located below this elevation.
