"We'll have a good feel in the next month or so as to what the issues are," says Hines vice president David Perry, with the draft EIR providing a formal process for interested parties to voice any concerns. Perry says he anticipates that the first leg of the approval will be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2001, while a best-case scenario would have the project underway by the end of next year.

Among the potential roadblocks are questions being raised by Amtrak and the Federal Aviation Administration. The former is troubled about service interruptions on the train tracks above which most of the development would be built, whereas the FAA has criticized a planned 47-story office tower due to possible impacts on air traffic. Preservationists, meanwhile, worry that new construction would detract from a recent restoration of the historic South Station itself.

Having already done several redevelopments at major transit centers, including construction of a new office building over New York City's Grand Central Post Office, Hines should be able to mitigate any conflicts, Perry predicts, maintaining that, "we've got a program that we think is going to satisfy Amtrak and the [Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority]," which operates commuter and subway lines through the station."We have dealt with those issues elsewhere, and we feel we can also address them at South Station," says Perry.