Cambridge Common House

Cambridge Common House is Lark's flagship in Greater Boston. It opened in spring 2026 in a house that has stood at 2 Garden Street since 1835. The building was the Howe family home, and Sarah Howe took in Harvard boarders. Lark kept the fireplaces, woodwork and moldings, and fitted 16 rooms into it.

The place

The address is 2 Garden Street, on the edge of Harvard Square, and many rooms look over Cambridge Common, the park where George Washington took command of the Continental Army on 3 July 1775. Harvard Yard and the Harvard Red Line station are a short walk away. Central Square is one stop down the line and Kendall Square two, and Lark puts downtown Boston about 15 minutes away by Red Line and Logan Airport about 15 minutes by car.

There is no parking on site. Guests can pull into the driveway to unload and check in, then use nearby lots or garages.

The concept

The house dates to 1835. Sarah Howe, a judge's widow, bought the land and had a neighbor, William Saunders, build it. She took in Harvard students and professors as boarders, and the garden later hosted Harvard Dramatic Club performances. One of her grandchildren, Lois Lilley Howe, was among the first women to graduate from MIT's architecture program. Lark presents the house as a gathering place for students, artists and intellectuals over nearly two centuries.

Lark, a New England developer and manager, treats it as its flagship in Greater Boston. Founder and chairman Rob Blood has said he wanted to open in the region but not with just anything. The Boston trade press listed the conversion as running from 2024 into 2026.

Elder & Ash, a design firm based in Newburyport, did the interiors; the local tourism office credits Megan Kennedy, Boutique Design's 2023 Designer of the Year, and Rob Blood. The rooms keep their woodwork and moldings, and many have working fireplaces. Walls carry striped and botanical wallpapers in deep greens and blues, with tufted Chesterfield chairs, mahogany canopy beds in some rooms and crimson built-in wraparound beds in the smallest. Striped drapery frames each room entrance, and abstract art hangs throughout. Rooms are named after historical figures and local landmarks: The Washington, The Brattle, The Charles, The Epitaph.

The count is 16 rooms in Lark's announcement; one local listing adds a suite. Two accessible rooms on the lowest level have private sunken patios.

Dining & wellness

There is no full restaurant. A housemade breakfast is included and is served each morning in the first-floor lounge, with coffee, water and afternoon treats available during the day. A back garden gives guests somewhere quiet to sit.

The neighborhood handles dinner. The tourism office points to Alden & Harlow, The Hourly Oyster House and Pammy's, which it describes as recognized by the Michelin Guide, all within walking distance.