0 MIT Plans to Further Transform Kendall Square, Main Street

Posted on September 14, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Office building in Cambridge on 1 main st

! Main Street, Cambridge

Changes in real estate keep coming, now MIT is elaborating on its plans for 1 Main Street in Kendall.

According to the Boston Globe, “University officials this week presented additional details of their plan for a reimagined Main Street, with new towers, wider sidewalks, welcoming open spaces, and clear signals to visitors that they have landed at MIT and in Kendall Square. The presentation before the city’s Planning Board on Tuesday night provided an overview of the $1.2 billion redevelopment project, which calls for converting six parking lots into offices, research space, hundreds of units of housing, and more than 100,000 square feet of retail. The six new buildings near Main would rise up to 300 feet tall.” The Globe article further explains, “City planners were largely supportive of MIT’s plan, though in a memo they expressed concern about “the scale and bulk” of some of the proposed buildings, warning that they might overwhelm pedestrians. Several members of the Planning Board agreed that the buildings appeared too imposing; some also called for more middle-class housing. But the board did certify that the plan met zoning and design guidelines.”

You can read the full article on the Boston Globe.

Available Office Listings and Area Details
Kendall Square Office Space

0 Older Office Buildings in Boston Yielding Higher Rent Prices

Posted on September 13, 2015 by Wil Catlin

office space at 10 Post office square in Boston

Credit: Boston Globe

It is true, Class B office rents are on par with the low rise space in class a towers.

From the Boston Globe:

What they lack in modern conveniences, the Class B buildings make up in character: Many have exposed bricks and beams or ornate stairways and other finishings that have caught the eye of young technology companies and other startups looking for more authentic digs.

Vacancy rates for those buildings have been consistently below those of the more modern, taller downtown towers, something unheard of in previous decades, according to JLL, a Chicago commercial real estate firm with offices in Boston.

Rents at Class B buildings in downtown Boston have increased about 32 percent over the past three years, compared with 18 percent for space in Class A towers, according to Cushman & Wakefield.

Related Office Listings
Boston Commercial Real Estate

0 Three New Seaport Office Towers Gain Approval

Posted on September 7, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston Globe

The skyline in the Seaport continue to change with the approval of 3 more towers Boston Civic Design Commission.

According to a recent Boston Globe article, “the Boston Civic Design Commission gave its approval to the plans for three 22-story condo and apartment towers and retail along Seaport Boulevard. It’s the final city approval needed for the $700 million project, said Nick Martin, a spokesman for the Boston Redevelopment Authority…Unlike many developments in the Seaport, which have been criticized for being overly boxy, these buildings are designed with staggered heights and different shapes arrayed around an elevated podium with retail on the 3.5 acre site. It would include about 1,100 condos and apartments,- with the exact mix to be determined by market conditions – and 125,000 square feet of retail space. The buildings will be built on two blocks between Seaport Boulevard and Congress Street, between B Street and East Service Road.”

You can read the full article on the Globe’s website.

0 WiredScore Indicates Office Space Connectivity

Posted on September 6, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Click on the image to view additional property details for 230 Congress St.

The office tenants in today’s market factor many variables as they narrow down the list of potential locations. Today, one of the top three questions my team hears is connectivity; who’s in the building. Gone are the days of just replying by saying, “A T1.”

Tenants what to know who are all the providers, how is the building’s infrastructure set up to handle loads, and what are the annual costs. Some companies demand dual providers for fault tolerant service. A company that is looking to certify the entire U.S. office market is WiredScore with their certification levels of connectivity.

Platinum: Best in class connectivity
Gold: Redundant, diverse internet connectivity
Silver: Meets needs of most commercial tenants
Certified: Meets minimum standards

Beacon Capital of Boston is one of the 1st landlords to certify their entire portfolio. 230 Congress Street is certified platinum.

Related Listings
Follow the link or click on the image to view the property details and availability for 230 Congress Street.

0 What Does the Commute Cost Boston Drivers?

Posted on September 6, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Do you pick you job based on where you live or do you pick where you live based on your job?

According to estimates from the Boston Globe, “Boston-area drivers spent an extra 64 hours in the car due to traffic in 2014, a new study found. During that time, they burned an extra 30 gallons of gas and also lost time they could have been productive. It added up to an estimated $1,388 lost per driver…Boston ranked as the sixth worst major metropolitan area for traffic congestion.”

Credit: Boston Globe

You can read the full article on the Boston Globe.

0 Copley Place Renovations Begin this Month

Posted on September 6, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

More construction is headed to Back Bay’s Copley Square with Simon’s upgrade of their Copley Place.

The BBJ notes, “the renovations will include physical upgrades such as new flooring and ceiling treatments, upgraded escalators and glass handrails and an upscale food court component.” Expected to wrap up next summer, “the interior retail work is a part of Simon’s $500 million, 1.96 million-square-foot expansion of Copley Place, which includes a new 52-story, 542-unit residential tower that’s currently under construction. The Boston Redevelopment Authority in May approved an updated affordable housing agreement for the project, as well as a redrawn boundary agreement that now prevents facades from encroaching outside the project site.”

You can read the full article on the Boston Business Journal website, here.

0 Free Office Space in Boston for Select Irish Start-ups

Posted on September 6, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Silicon Republic

Irish entrepreneurship is alive and strong within greater Boston. Launch Space is the launch pad for Irish based companies looking to expand into the U.S. marketplace.

From Silicon Republic:

“The Netwatch Launch Space is about creating a connected community of Irish companies who can support each other as they seek to build their business here,” said David Walsh, CEO of Netwatch…Netwatch made the move in 2011 and we can give other Irish companies a real insight into our experience of setting up a base in the US, introduce them to our own network of clients and contacts, including legal, financial and marketing advisers to ease their entry into what is a huge and varied market.”

0 Commercial Real Estate Portfolio for Macy’s Exceeds Value of Business

Posted on September 5, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Bizjournals

When the value of your real estate exceeds the value of your business what do you do? Macy’s investors are putting pressure on the retail to separate the entities.

According to the Bizjournals website, Macy’s investors are considering “spinning off the 556 stores it owns nationwide, including its 34th Street store in midtown Manhattan, into a separate company…By spinning off the real estate as a separate business, Macy’s would be able to rent out space or even sell part of its holdings at a time when commercial real estate market is hot, and brick-and-mortar retailers are facing greater competition from online sellers. Analysts have suggested the upper floors of Macy’s in Herald Square could be sold off as condos or a hotel.”

You can read more about Macy’s estimated $21 billion real estate portfolio on the Bizjournal.com/newyork.

0 Congress Sq. Project Adds Seven-Story Office Tower in Boston Financial District

Posted on September 5, 2015 by Wil Catlin

rendering of the new Jewel Box in the Congress Sq. Project

Credit: Bizjournals

The revitalization of the old continues as 40 Water Street makes its debut.

Scott Pollack, principal with Arrowstreet, said in a BBJ article, “It seemed like a real opportunity to serve an interest in the market that otherwise really isn’t being served at the moment.” The block of buildings is situated near Post Office Square, in between Milk Street and State Street — a relatively “dead” block, Pollack said, but one that could be jump-started with new activity…“It is amazing for someone who walks back and forth on this one block from Milk Street to State Street how dead it is,” Pollack said. “The intention of this project is to open it back up and really reconnect these two significant parts of the downtown.”

Jump over to the Boston Business Journal to read the full article.

0 Workbar Offers a Network of Co-Working Office Space

Posted on September 5, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BetaBoston

Have a peek at how some of the shared workspace providers manage users and spaces locally and worldwide.

From BetaBoston:

“Workbar has partnered with Fields Corner Business Lab and five other regional co-working spaces to create the Workbar Network, which will link these independently run facilities into a larger community…As part of the network, these [original] six sites are now using Workbar’s proprietary software to help manage their members, Cole says. The software provides tools for managers to check people in, coordinate conference room bookings, and promote events and happenings throughout the network at large. ‘It’s everything they need to run the space,’ says Cole.”

“’The reservation system is much easier to manage and it gives us more data,’ says Maudlin, who says the software helped them realize that they had a lot of people who only came to the space on weekends. ‘If we were going to do an event or do something for our members, we now know when are they there the most. It’s a lot more information that we can use to better service our members.’”