Last modified: Thursday, November 13, 2008 11:08 AM EST Foxboro biotech park eyed for Rte. 1 BY FRANK MORTIMER SUN CHRONICLE STAFF FOXBORO - The Kraft Group wants to build a 1.6 million-square-foot biotech office park with two multi-tier parking garages on Kraft-owned land across Route 1 from Gillette Stadium, and the town may be in line for a bite at a $55 million apple set aside by the state to spur such development. "They're in the process of marketing for a tenant for this biotech office campus," Building Commissioner William Casbarra said Wednesday. He said the timing of the project would depend on how soon a major tenant is found - however, the state, under a new development initiative, may help in that quest. At 1.6 million square feet, the office park would dwarf Emerald Square mall in North Attleboro, which is about 1 million square feet. Casbarra and Town Manager Andrew Gala met Nov. 4 with Kraft representatives and leaders from the Executive Office of Housing & Economic Development, which has announced a well-funded "Growth District Initiative" designed to speed up commercial and residential development in Massachusetts. Under that initiative, the agency will expedite projects in towns and cities that have identifed areas suitable for "significant growth," and which support the projects, Casbarra said. Casbarra and Gala said the special Economic Overlay District the town already created for Route 1 development should help qualify Foxboro for a piece of a $55 million state grant fund. The town would use the money for project-related infrastructure under the state program, they said. Casbarra said Gregory Bialecki, the state's undersecretary of economic development, made it clear during the session that "the governor did not want to go into partership with any of the communities unless the communities wanted the project. They want this to be a partnership between the community and the state." Gala briefly mentioned the initiative at the end of Monday's selectmen's meeting, and gave board members a copy of the agency's announcement of the Growth District Initiative. Development that occurs within the districts has "the potential to shape the overall patterns of our state's growth in the coming years," the announcement says. It says zoning in advance for growth helps both the public and developers because the public can be less receptive to zoning and permitting that appears to cater to a specific proposal. Not having zoning in place can mean hurdles and unpredicability for the builder. Gala said he asked during the Nov. 4 meeting how the state's budget problem would affect the grants, and was told that the grant fund was already bonded and will be distributed among 16 Massachusetts communities that have taken steps to streamline development approvals - notably through zoning. He said 11 of the communities have already been selected. Characteristics of the "growth districts" will include pre-planned zoning and streamlined permitting, market-based planning, fairness to neighbors, environmentally sound land use, transportation access and adequate utilities. Job and housing creation would be another plus. Once the state-town partnership is formed, Casbarra said, the agency would make available tools to help a project along. One of those tools, he said, would be aiding the search for commercial tenants. April Anderson Lamoureux, who accompanied Bialecki at the meeting, would serve as the state's ombudsman. Dan Murphy, vice president of business development and external affairs for the Kraft Group, attended the meeting with Dan Krantz, director of project development. Murphy could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday. In the past, the Patriots organization has preferred not to comment on plans that have yet to be filed.