0 Map out the Inside of your Office Buildings

Posted on November 19, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Bisnow

Maps are no longer just about city streets and highways, they are for indoors as well. Look to Google and Apple to see what’s on the inside of a building near you.

From Bisnow:

Google uses a rucksack contraption to create indoor maps of large venues like the British Museum in London. Apple is also getting in on the action with its “Indoor Survey App,” which allows users to map interiors by “dropping points,” CityMetric reports. And while Google and Apple offer nice 2D maps, Harvard University and Redlands, CA-based SmarterBetterCities are taking it to the next level. They’re working together to create 3D interior maps of Harvard’s campus, using ESRI’s arcGIS platform.

0 Envoy Hotel Offers Comfortable Getaway within Boston’s Seaport

Posted on November 15, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston Herald

How far is far enough to “get away?” Well, according to Moira McCarthy the Seaport Envoy Hotel fits the bill. Check it out next time you are considering a Boston destination.

From the Boston Herald:

Tucked into the edge of Boston Harbor (it gazes down upon the iconic Barking Crab restaurant), the hotel offers a new and distinctive feel for a Boston stay, but with enough classic Boston and seaside to remind us what an amazing city we live in. There’s even a rooftop bar…Warm and almost beachy, and touched with the hotel’s signature yellow and lots of reclaimed wood, the lobby featured classic games such as Connect Four, deep and comfortable conversation-pit-style couches, artistic touches like a chandelier made from reclaimed materials, and an open feel.

You can read a first-person account’s of their stay in the Boston Herald.

0 Boston Garden Gets Design Approval

Posted on November 12, 2015 by Wil Catlin

BP is on the march in North Station area of Boston with approvals Boston Civic Design Commission.

Credit: Boston Business Journal

From Bizjournals’s Boston vertical:

When fully built out, Boston Garden will be a 1.87 million-square-foot mixed-use development with a residential tower and an office tower sitting atop a multi-level podium connecting North Station and TD Garden to Causeway Street…The project’s first phase is a $285 million steel-and-glass podium named “Champions Row.” Beyond creating a transportation hub for North Station commuters as well as crowds at TD Garden, the “Champions Row” podium is slated to include a Star Market grocery store; a 20,000-square-foot sports bar that can hold up to 500 patrons; a 50,000-square-foot entertainment venue that could seat up to 1,000 people; a movie theater; a bowling alley; and additional retail space.

0 Cambridge Office Rents Continue to Grow

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

Office rents continue to climb in East Cambridge in both Lab and Office with some of $80 per square foot.

A BBJ article reports, “Escalating rents in Cambridge’s Kendall Square are pushing away some young life science and biotech companies, but there’s still incredibly strong demand for Class A office and lab space in the neighborhood, according to Alexandria Real Estate Equities.”

You can read the full article on the Boston Business Journal’s website.

0 Boston Rolls Out Virtual Suggestion Box for Input

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Wil Catlin

The city of Boston wants to hear from you about your vision; the city has contracted with Textizen to enable the virtual suggestion box to get your input.

According to Banker&Tradesman, the initiative encourages “residents to respond to survey questions on improving quality of life and what issues they think the city should focus on in the new master plan.”

0 Boston Global Investors Moves Offices to Seaport

Posted on November 6, 2015 by Wil Catlin

office building at 1 Post office square in Boston

Credit: Boston Business Journal

Putting their money where their mouth is, Boston Global Investors is moving to the Seaport. They will be moving to Block H along Seaport Boulevard once construction is complete on their 6,00 square foot parcel.

From the BBJ:

Boston Global Investors will move its headquarters from its current office at 1 Post Office Square in Boston’s Financial District to the Seaport…The firm last week spent $2.21 million to buy a 6,000-square-foot parcel at Seaport Square’s Block H, located along Seaport Boulevard…a four-story office is under construction at the site, and Hynes said Boston Global Investors will relocate there when construction is finished.

With the final parcels trading hands last week, Seaport Square’s 23 acres have officially sold for $665.2 million since 2011. The parcels were originally acquired in 2006, in a deal spearheaded by Hynes with financing from Morgan Stanley, for $203.75 million.

0 Bulfinch Triangle Parcel Near North Station Acquired for $24.5M

Posted on November 5, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Banker and Tradesman

Dollars keep coming into Boston’s Class A and B markets. The latest is into the North Station market by Bridgeton for $24.5M. Office Rents in the Class B market are hovering around the $40 mark depending on timing, term and T/I.

A B&T article reports, “New York-based private equity fund Bridgeton Holdings has acquired a hotel and retail building across from the TD Garden for $24.5 million…The five-story, 54,000-square-foot building is located at the corner of Causeway and Friend streets. Ground-floor tenants include Qdoba, North Station Liquors and the Ace Tickets studio used for Celtics pre- and post-game shows on Comcast SportsNet.”

You can read additional information, on B&T, here.

0 Monitor Cambridge Office Developments Online

Posted on November 5, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Cliff Notes for real estate? Well, in a way, yes. coUrbanize is a conduit into filing packages for city development projects, without forcing the reader to take the time to read a 400-page memorandum. The system will allow readers to view a summary of the project and leave their comments behind.

site to track Cambridge office development online

Property page on coUrbanize

A Banker&Tradesman article reports “coUrbanize is partnering with the city to post summaries and details of 42 projects that are in permitting or under construction, including the 1-million-square-foot Kendall Square urban renewal plan and approximately 3,000 new residential units across the city…Over the past year, Cambridge planning officials have been sharing their open data system with coUrbanize, which built a website showing the location and details of all development proposals and construction projects.”

B&T summarized the key point thusly: “The platform gives residents a new avenue to participate in the process outside the traditional public hearing forum.

0 Seaport Office Trades Set the Market

Posted on November 5, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Banker and Trademan

Seaport trades continue to set the high water mark with Berkeley disposition of the Stillings Street garage and 22 Boston Wharf Road.

From B&T

A Maryland real estate adviser that manages a $7-billion pension fund’s portfolio has made the latest in a series of big investments in Boston’s Fort Point neighborhood, acquiring four parcels for $162.5 million from Boston-based Berkeley Investments Monday. The latest purchases include the 580-space Stillings Street garage and 55,095-square-foot office building at 22 Boston Wharf Road, which sold for $86.5 million. Berkeley is proposing to add two floors of office space totaling 50,000 square feet…Other transactions include 17-31 Farnsworth St. for $44 million, 12 Farnsworth St. for $30 million and a parking lot at 11 Sleeper St. for $2 million.

Related Listings
Available Office Space in Boston Seaport

0 Microsol Announces Expansion, Move to Boston Financial District

Posted on November 4, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Ryan Hurd of Boston Realty Advisors assisted Microsol with their Boston expansion.

From PR Newswire:

Microsol Resources Corporation, an Autodesk Platinum Partner and a recognized leader in CAD and BIM Solutions serving the architectural, engineering and construction industries, is pleased to announce the move of its Boston office to a new location in the heart of the Financial District. Located on the tenth floor of 2 Oliver Street, the new facility features a state-of-the-art training center, capable of handling classes of up to 10 students.

“With the expansion and move to our new office at 2 Oliver Street we will be able to increase our ability to support the growing number of clients we have, not just in Boston and the Boston Metro area, but also in New England in general,” said Emilio Krausz, President, Microsol Resources. “We are now just a short walk away from the offices of many of our current and future clients and from South Station.”