Science Trumps Art: Harvard Museum Project Postponed

Looks like the Harvard University Art Museums may have to put up with their substandard digs for even longer than its most recent plans anticipated.
Hailey Heinz reports in today’s Boston Globe [via]:
Harvard and Boston Redevelopment Authority officials said last night that they would hold off on plans to build an art gallery in Allston, after local residents and politicians spoke against the proposal and expressed concern that they have been left out of the decision-making process.
At an Allston-Harvard Task Force meeting at St. Anthony’s School, residents insisted Harvard finalize plans on a proposed 695,000-square-foot science complex before it begins pushing the art project.
Harvard has been buying Allston land in bits and pieces over the past decade. Throughout the process Harvard officials have been meeting with residents to devise ways to expand their campus with minimal impact on local life. Harvard would like to break ground on the science center as early as this summer.
The university had hoped to begin construction on the new art museum facility this fall.
Is there any lesson to be learned from Harvard’s rocky community relations in Allston that might be applied to Columbia University’s expansion plans in Manhattanville?
If you’re planning to a major invasion of a community, proceed cautiously and respectfully, and plan collaboratively.