0 Boston Commercial Real Estate Trends towards Open Floor Plans and Collaborative Workspaces

Posted on October 12, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Organizations are knocking down interior office walls faster than you can spell “collaboration.”

Boston Realty Advisors estimates more than 75% of tenants today are looking for open floor plans, as opposed to traditional layouts with closed-door offices and high-walled cubicles. The trend for open offices is giving fresh legs to a proven phenomenon. Many organizations site open floor plans as a core element to their company ethos and ultimately, a key reason for their success. Zappos, for example, credits its open floor plan as a critical element to establishing and maintaining its culture. From a few employees 15 years ago, to more than 1,500 today, Zappos has maintained its open floor plan throughout the company’s history.

The push to open floor plans isn’t just for employees and middle management. In fact, many CEOs are leading the charge. By placing themselves alongside the team, the benefits are clear: increased availability, greater transparency and a heightened awareness to company culture and communication. The tired corporate adage, “My door is always open,” pales in comparison to today’s mantra, “I don’t have a door to close.”

Wayfair, the Boston-based online home furnishings company, proudly describes its collaborative C-suite structure. “At Wayfair, there are no corner offices. In fact, there are no offices at all. We support an open, transparent workplace where leaders mentor the 1,600+ bright talents that sit among them – and visa versa.”

Another organization, The Bridgespan Group, detailed their journey from a traditional office environment to a new, open floor plan. Their tale serves as a playbook for organizations considering an open floor plan:

·         Open café to bring colleagues together
·         Laboratory space for teams to meet and brainstorm
·         Library-like space for quiet work
·         Comfortable seating areas for small-group meetings
·         Private rooms for private conversations
·         Sitting and standing work stations for day-to-day use
·         Glass-walled conference rooms for full transparency
·         Noise dampening techniques to muffle distinct words
·         Lockers for personal items

So, get out that sledgehammer and start creating a vision for a collaborative work environment.

Alternatively, follow the link to our property pages to view available Boston Commercial Real Estate.

0 101 Seaport Boulevard Set to Open Oct. 2015

Posted on October 9, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Banker&Tradesman

The Seaport office marker continues to grow with 101 Seaport Boulevard scheduled to host its new tenant PwC in October of 2015.

Banker and Tradesman observes, “construction crews from Skanska and its subcontractors attended a ceremony Tuesday as the final steel beam was placed atop the structure to complete the framing phase of the project…The parcel is part of the 23-acre Seaport Square development that is permitted for 6.35 million square feet of residential and commercial development. Skanska acquired the one-acre 101 Seaport parcel for $33 million from Morgan Stanley and Boston Global Investors in 2012.”

The full B&T article is available here: Aggressive Timetable For PwC Tower In Seaport

0 888 Boylston Street to Bring New Office Space to Back Bay

Posted on October 9, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Bisnow

888 Boylston Street will offer the newest office space in Back Bay in 10 years. This building will have a strong green initiative that will incorporate onsite solar and wind power generation. Additionally, “those working in this mid-rise will have enough natural light 60% of the time to forgo artificial lighting thanks to 14-foot ceilings and other technology. It will use 37% less potable water and 45% less energy than a traditional office. Bryan…who has a long time commitment to sustainability, says in addition to solar-energy generated on-site, this will be Boston’s first commercial office tower to use wind turbine energy,” Bisnow reports.

Click through for additional details on the proposed newest Back Bay office building.

0 Seaport Office Rent Exceeds Boston Financial District

Posted on October 5, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Seaport District: 320 West Second Street (click on the image for property details)

The most expensive office market in Boston is Back Bay. Not surprising. The surprising piece of news is the Seaport and Innovation District is the second most expensive office market in Boston, edging out the Financial District by over a $1.00 PSF. So the value play is the Class A low rise and Class B within the Financial District.

“‘For the first time in at least the last seven quarters if not ever, average asking rents in Boston’s burgeoning Seaport District have surpassed asking rents in the city’s Financial District, according to new data from real estate brokerage Jones Lang LaSalle,’ published on the BBJ. “The highest rate of year-over-year rent growth was in the Seaport District, where landlords were asking 24.7 percent more in the third quarter of 2014 than during the third quarter of 2013.”

Additional details on the market discrepancy are available in the full Boston Business Journal article.

0 Strong Demand Keeps Boston Office Rents Rising

Posted on October 5, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Office Building in Demand: 121 High Street in Boston’s financial district (click for property details)

Today there are fewer options for office tenants to occupy, along with with increased office rents. Combine this with additional tenant improvement dollars that have been pushed downward, and free rent has become obsolete. What does that mean? We are in the midst of a landlord market.

From The Boston Globe:

“Strong growth of technology and financial companies is increasing office rents across the region and fueling proposals for new office buildings from Route 128 to Cambridge and downtown Boston…In Boston, rents for top-rated space ticked up to $51.79. That represents only a slight increase from last year, but several large companies have recently committed to leasing new space in the city, including Natixis Global Asset Management and Sonos Inc., a wireless speaker maker.”

“’A lot of younger workers want to be in the city, and that’s very clearly driving companies’ decisions,’ said Bob Richards, a partner at Transwestern RBJ. ‘That trend is definitely deepening.’”

0 Office Tower Proposed in Downtown Boston in Winthrop Square

Posted on October 5, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Is a new tower coming to downtown Boston, in Winthrop Square? Time will tell, but repurposing the shuttered garage site would be a welcome change.

rendering of new proposed office tower in boston financial district

Credit: The Boston Globe

According to The Boston Globe, the re-imagined tower “of up to 740 feet…would be a new centerpiece on the city’s rapidly changing skyline…The building would occupy one of the last major development sites in the Financial District, replacing a decrepit city-owned parking garage at Winthrop Square with a skyscraper that could cost as much as $900 million to build.”

The Globe article also includes a photo gallery of the proposed downtown Boston tower.

0 Government Center T Station Renovation Making Progress

Posted on October 5, 2014 by Wil Catlin

T station renovations at Govt. Center in Boston

Credit: The Boston Globe

The Government Center T Station is taking shape. The glass entryway will be a welcome change for both above and below grade.

From The Boston Globe:

“The most visible sign of progress at the Government Center Station renovation project is the construction of an entryway called a ‘head house,’ which is set to be wrapped in glass and promises to brighten the underground transit hub when it reopens in the spring of 2016.”

“‘I love the project,’ said Brian P. Howland, a resident engineer for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. ‘This is an area that hasn’t had anything happen to it in over 45 years. Putting something like this in this area now is going to have a huge impact.’”