Kendall Square, once a bleak, industrial backwater, is now a Cambridge hot spot.  A dense cluster of biopharma labs has attracted tech giants like Google, “luxury” apartment blocks and restaurants offering oysters, tapas and serious coffee. Last week, The Boston Globe called the neighborhood “a place city dwellers, foodies and beer enthusiasts can enjoy.”

MIT also sees it another way – as an investment opportunity. The school’s Kendall Square Initiative – as outlined to the City Council in in May — calls for remaking one of the neighborhoods area’s last barren spots into  “a mixed-use revitalization project.” That includes housing, retail and eight new commercial buildings  to house labs and offices, which The Globe values at $2 billion.

But, opposition has emerged.  This time, it is not from activist neighbors. Instead, a small group of faculty members and the Graduate Student Council have issued statements questioning the use of one of MIT’s last vacant parcels for commercial development. Continue reading →