All surface parking lots are expected to see development under the 25-year Master Plan. The North Lot, which had 388 spaces, closed at the beginning of the Spring 2013 semester so that General Academic Building 1 (GAB1) could be constructed on that site and won’t reopen.

The lots will be replaced by the Utility Corridor, new residence halls, GAB1, and a trigeneration plant — a power station that generates electricity, heat, and cooling. Two garages will be built to replace all the surface lots.

Until the garages are built, the Bayside Lot, which has 1300 spaces, will be open. There are no plans to shut down the Bayside Lot even during the upcoming construction. The lot is next to the old Bayside Exposition Center on Morrissey Ave, and shuttle buses run regularly between the lot, the MBTA, and the university. The lot and the center are both properties of University of Massachusetts Boston.

Construction is scheduled to begin on the Short-term Lot, which has 32 spaces, mid-September. The lot closed Sept. 3 because school officials want to discourage use of the lot before construction begins. One of seven underground mechanical vaults will be built in place of the Short-term Lot to house utilities items.

The Campus Center Garage, which has 140 spaces, reopened on the same day that the Short-term Lot closed.

The South Lot, with its 542 spaces, is open. However, the current plan is to close it for the Utility Corridor construction next summer. The materials used to construct the corridor will be gathered in a “lay-down” area on the lot for construction.

According to original plans, Lot A and the 275 spaces within were supposed to be closed, but the university delayed closing until next semester. Because UMass Boston is built on a landfill, 20% of the dirt will be toxic and will have to be disposed of. Dirt inspection and processing will happen in a “materials processing area” where Lot A once stood. The non-toxic dirt will be used to elevate other construction sites.

Though the Beacon Lot, which has 202 spaces, won’t shut down in the near future, it may be closed as part of the second phase of the Utility Corridor work after 2016.

The University of Boston’s first residence hall is tentatively scheduled to be built in 2016 either on Lot D (474 spaces) or Lot B (144 spaces). Another residence hall will be built on the remaining lot after 2016. Lot C (158) will hold part of the residence hall in Lot B, and the trigeneration plant.

Two new parking garages will be built to replace the closed lots. Construction of the first is scheduled in 2016 and construction of the second afterwards.

Yunus Tokcan