The 66-unit Riverview Condominiums at 221 Mount Auburn St. overlooking the glittering Charles River will be demolished, the condo’s board of trustees said Thursday. The news comes half a year after an announcement to owners that they needed to evacuate due to structural issues discovered during a 2023 roof renovation.
The eight-story building, in what residents described as a tight-knit community, has been empty since the winter.
To prepare for the demolition, residents of the adjacent building at 22-28 Bradbury St. are being told to move out by early summer, said a spokesperson for the condo’s management company in an email. The Bradbury townhouses are part of the same condominium association and were built at the same time, but they do not suffer from Riverview’s structural issues. Bradbury needs to be vacated because utility connections for the building runs through Riverview, the spokesperson said.
“Conversations continue among the residents about the future sale of the Riverview property,” said Rachael Dane, the spokesperson, in the same email describing the demolition decision.
The process of demolishing the building, which will require various assessments and a permit application to the city, is in the early stages, and details around selling the property need to be ironed out. But the condominium owners that Cambridge Day could reach were thankful for some resolution on what to do with the building.
“For those of us who have lived there, it’s sad – but it’s just not fixable,” said condo owner Judy Kugel, referring to the Riverview. “I’m relieved they’ve made a decision.”
“It’s heartbreaking, but really good news it’s going to get resolved. It’s been up in the air for months,” said Judy Foreman, another condo owner and a former Boston Globe columnist. “It has to be demolished.”
Riverview’s original construction
According to a November analysis from the engineering firm hired by the condo association, the building’s structure suffers from multiple serious issues pointing to problems in the building’s 1963 construction, including reinforcement that is “severely misplaced” compared with the original construction documents; and concrete quality of “consistently low strength.”
But sparse record keeping by the city and construction companies on older projects makes it hard to piece together how the building was first constructed so poorly that it’s being demolished prematurely.
The condominiums were built as one of the Cambridge Redevelopment Authority’s first urban renewal projects, according to an article published by the authority. First Realty, founded and led at the time by the late Max Kargman, was selected in a competition to develop Riverview and Bradbury into their current forms, according to a 1962 Magazine of Cambridge article archived by the city’s historical commission. In most documents and news articles, First Realty is listed as the developer.
Even so, it’s not clear who constructed the building or was otherwise responsible for the low-quality concrete, misplaced reinforcements and other structural issues. In general, developers contract construction companies. They can then subcontract other contractors for more specific tasks.
The official inspectional permit from 1963 indicates “Riverview Redevelopment Construction Co.” to be the constructor, which gives little insight. A news clipping from the historical commission lists Turner Construction to be the constructor, alongside First Realty as the developer.
In the Magazine of Cambridge article from 1962, Thomas Gilbane, president of Gilbane Building of Providence, is listed as the construction supervisor.
From a legal perspective, construction companies have little incentive to keep records on a building this far past the state’s six-year statute of repose on construction deficiencies. Wes Cotter, a Gilbane spokesperson, wrote in an email that Gilbane has no record of overseeing Riverview’s construction.
“Traditionally in line with standard industry practice we turn over records to our clients sometime after the project is completed,” Cotter wrote.
A Turner Construction spokesperson did not respond to multiple calls and emails requesting comment. First Realty Management declined to comment, saying that it “has no role in the ownership, management or operation of Riverview Condominium.”
Concrete problems elsewhere
There’s no outlook yet on financial relief from the state for the condo owners. For some, their condo was their main or only asset. Some of the luxury units are worth more than $2 million, according to Cambridge’s property database.
Coincidentally, Riverview’s woes come as some members of the state Legislature are struggling to pass budget amendments to help homeowners with crumbling concrete foundations. Boston.com reported the stumble May 1.
So far, the amendments are scoped to address a specific issue found in Central and Western Massachusetts homes arising from a mineral called pyrrhotite leading to compromised, crumbling concrete and expensive repairs.
“As far as I know the Riverside Condo foundation has not been tested for pyrrhotite,” said state Rep. Steven Owens, who represents the district containing the Riverview condos, in an email. “It’s unclear whether any place in Cambridge has this particular problem, but if so, we’re on hand to help residents.”
This post was updated May 16, 2025, to correct the number of units at Riverview to 66 based on information from the its management company.
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