0 Prudential Center Security Robot? Yep!

Posted on June 20, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Security is changing in our office and retail centers with the introduction of Robots. Boston Properties is a leader with the introduction of their robot at the Prudential Center in May.

Credit: Boston Globe

From the Boston Globe:

Dennis Crowley, senior vice president with Allied’s integrated technology group, said a similar robot in California recently used its thermal imaging technology to identify a hair curler someone had left on at a boutique kiosk after closing for the night.

The robot alerted security guards at the nearby command center.

“So they were able to prevent a fire,” Crowley said.

0 Verizon to Open Cambridge Co-Working Office Space

Posted on June 20, 2017 by Wil Catlin

cambridge shared office space from Verizon

Credit: BBJ

Your phone provider could be your new office landlord. Verizon is dipping into the market by converting former telecommunication space to office space and partnering with Alley to run it.

From Bizjournals.com:

“Alley, powered by Verizon,” the new membership-only, 10,000-square-foot space in Cambridge is scheduled to open at the end of June at 10 Ware St. The facility served as a central office for Verizon (NYSE: VZ) that previously housed network and telecommunications equipment.

0 Prioritize and Execute Technology Migrations Early in an Office Move

Posted on June 20, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

Any move is stressful be it for you home or office. The office can’t work without computers connected to the web and phones. Make sure to plan so your team reduces down time and plans for alternative solutions.

Here are some standard office timeframe considerations to keep in mind, courtesy of the Boston Business Journal:

Most Internet Service Providers take 60 to 120 days to have their service installed and ready in your new space
Most phone vendors take 30 to 90 days for their part, especially if they need to install their own circuit
Ideally, furniture should be delivered and set up in your space a week prior to move-in to allow ample time for workstation setup
In other words, if you’re less than four months away from your move date and you haven’t taken a look at internet providers, it’s time to pick up the phone and pick up the pace.

0 Office Landlords Look to Uber, Lyft to Help Lure Tenants

Posted on June 20, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Traffic in Boston seaport and downtown area

Photo Credit: Boston Globe

Office landlords are constantly vying for office tenants to occupy their buildings. This is achieved through competitive rent, leasing incentives, common area upgrades and the addition of amenities. Now some landlords are looking beyond the traditional channels by helping their customers get their employees to the office without worrying about parking. Uber and Lyft could be the next line item on a landlords expense budget.

Bisnow notes, “Several New Jersey landlords are using the perk to overcome a lack of office parking, connect offices with downtowns and attract employees who do not own cars, the Wall Street Journal reports. Hugo Neu Corp. launched a program in March that offers $50 monthly credits for tenants’ employees without cars to commute to its Kearny Point office.”

You can read the full article on Bisnow.

0 Horticultural Hall at 300 Massachusetts Ave. Sold

Posted on June 18, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Huntington and Mass. Ave office building

Credit: Boston Globe

At the intersection of Huntington and Mass. Ave stands Horticultural Hall which will have a new owner, Marcus Partners. The building is 45,000-square feet and is scheduled for upgrades to the lobby and entrances.

According to the Boston Globe, “Horticultural Hall’s tenants include the Museum of Fine Arts’s William Morris Hunt Memorial Library, the New England Conservatory of Music, and the offices of Boston magazine.”

You can read more about the prospective updates to Horticultural Hall on the Boston Globe.

0 Cambridge Foundry Building on Rogers Street Eyed for Redevelopment

Posted on June 18, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Foundary Building at 101 Rogers Street in Cambridge

Credit: Wicked Local

The City of Cambridge has plans for the Foundry Building at 101 Rogers Street.

According to an article on Wickedlocal, “the redevelopment plans call for five high-traffic “destination spaces,” including a redesigned lobby, a black box theater/assembly hall, a community room, a kitchen and a workshop and five flexible “interstitial spaces” with classrooms, multi-purpose rooms, studios, a gallery and a mix of nonprofit and for profit office space.”

You can read the full article on Cambridge.Wickedlocal.com

Available Office Space
Cambridge office space for lease

0 Boston Food Trucks Fall Short in Hygiene

Posted on June 17, 2017 by Wil Catlin

How close is your office to the nearest food truck? City of Boston Health inspectors are worried about fresh water on the trucks for hand washing.

Credit: Boston Globe

From the Boston Globe:

But food trucks, which are proliferating at a rapid pace around Boston, are more likely to be temporarily shut down for serious health violations than their brick-and-mortar counterparts, most commonly for violating a basic requirement for proper sanitation: running water.

A Boston Globe review of 2016 city health records found that while food trucks were less likely overall than restaurants to have violations, they were more likely to be suspended for serious issues that pose an “imminent public health threat.” Nine of the city’s 96 licensed food trucks last year were closed on the spot until the violations were corrected, usually within a week or two. By comparison, two of every 100 restaurants were suspended.

0 Boston vs. NY – Commercial Real Estate Edition: Battle for Aetna

Posted on June 17, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

It appears the exodus from Connecticut continues as speculation swirls around Aetna’s search for a new home. Perhaps it is best summed up as a Yankees Red Sox battling in a pennant race and time will tell what city will be victorious. Boston will continue to attract world class companies of all sizes and the talented individuals who will be employed by them.

From Bizjournals.com:

“We are in negotiations with several states regarding a headquarters relocation, with the goal of broadening our access to innovation and the talent that will fill knowledge economy-type positions,” Aetna said in a statement on Wednesday.

The city of Boston in July 2015 had named Aetna a “top target” following proposed tax-law changes in Connecticut, according to emails obtained by the Boston Business Journal in a public-information request.

0 Fort Point Pedestrian Bridge to be Restored by GE

Posted on June 17, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston Globe

GE unveils a glimpse of our industrial past with renderings to the new pedestrian bridge at their new world headquarters in Boston’s Seaport. The new bridge will be used as four separate lounges and quiet working spaces for GE employees.

From the Boston Globe:

Consistent with its historical design, GE expects to keep a green wall on the east side of the bridge. But the bridge’s west side, facing downtown, would look quite different. The windowless facade, currently shielded by corrugated metal, would be replaced with banks of tall windows. The interior — oddly shaped at 40 feet long by 7 feet wide — is to be used as four separate lounges and quiet working spaces for GE employees.

The bridge was once an important link between buildings in the old New England Confectionery Co. complex. But it has long since outlived its original function. It now extends between one of two old brick buildings that GE will occupy and another former Necco building, currently owned by Synergy Investments. The Synergy-owned office building will remain walled off from the GE bridge.

0 Multi-Dimensional Seaport Office Building Billed as a ‘Game-Changer’

Posted on June 11, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Multi-dimensional commercial building in Seaport Boston

Credit: Boston Business Journal

Innovative architecture is proposed for the Seaport section of Boston curtesy of WS Development and their architect OMA based out of the Netherlands.

88 Seaport will feature 18 floors with nearly 425,000 square feet of office space, approximately 60,000 square feet of retail on the first two floors, and 5,000 square feet of civic/cultural use space. The building design features a unique series of cascading exterior terraces and a grand architectural gesture towards Fan Pier Green and the water’s edge.

From Bizjournals.com:

Yanni Tsipis, senior vice president with WS Development, told the Business Journal on Tuesday that the proposed design of the 88 Seaport Blvd. office is a game-changer for Seaport architecture. Shohei Shigematsu, a partner with Dutch architecture firm OMA, conceived the design for 88 Seaport, the firm said.

“It’s exciting to engage with the innovation migration to the Seaport District, and work with WS Development on a building positioned to be the nexus between historic Fort Point and the emerging waterfront developments,” Shigematsu said in a statement. “Our design for 88 Seaport slices the building into two volumes, creating distinct responses for each urban scale of old and new, while also accommodating diverse office typologies for diverse industries with demands for traditional and alternative floorplates. The slice also generates an opportunity to draw in the district’s public domains, linking the waterfront and Fan Pier Green with a continuous landscape.”