0 Boston Law Firms Employ Modern, Tech-forward Office Space

Posted on October 27, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Laws firms are dramatically changing the way they use space.

Credit: Bisnow

Out are:

Law libraries
Assistant for each lawyers
Large Private Offices

In are:

Flexible office partitions
Abundant Wi-Fi
Less square feet per employee

From Bisnow:

“There are typical functions each firm has — a good amount of conferencing, support areas, dining for associates, work for attorneys, administrator space, etc. What we’re seeing is tech is having a significant impact on the way firms are using space,” [said Stephen Bay, CBRE Vice Chairman and National Law Firm Broker].

The removal of the physical libraries and having fewer assistants on staff has resulted in office downsizing. As the average decade-long lease ends, firms are reducing their square footage per employee and making the office more flexible in a move to “future-proof” the workplace and remain competitive.

0 Tech Companies Gravitate Back to Cities

Posted on October 24, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Where do venture-backed companies focus when coming to the 617 area code? Unsurprisingly, the list focuses on the city core with areas like the Seaport, Financial District, Back Bay, Kendall Square and some clustered at the 90/95 interchange.

map of office space in Boston and Cambridge

Credit: City Lab

Here’s a national perspective from City Lab:

While many large, high-tech companies like Facebook, Google, Apple, and Microsoft have their main campuses in suburban areas, cities and urban areas house the majority of venture capital–backed startups. My own research estimates that 55 percent of all venture capital investment now flows to urban neighborhoods. In the Bay Area and Boston–Cambridge, more than 60 percent of venture capital investment gravitates to these neighborhoods.

Additional information is available on CityLab’s website.

0 Is the Seaport Gondola How You’re Getting to Work Tomorrow?

Posted on October 17, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Curbed Boston

Is getting to work taking too long since your office has moved to Boston Seaport? If so, the Seaport’s solution to your congestion could be a gondola system, according to Boston City Councilor Michael Flaherty.

From Biznow:

Millennium Partners has proposed a Summer Street, cable-propelled gondola network running from South Station to a property one of its subsidiaries owns in the Raymond L. Flynn Marine Park, the Boston Herald reports. As many as 71 10-passenger cabins could move as many as 4,000 passengers per hour in and out of the Seaport, where traffic is notoriously congested.

“A lot of commercial entities are struggling with whether they’re going to renew their leases or they want to come here, because it’s hard to get in and out,” Flaherty said on the Herald’s radio station Wednesday. “The gondola [system] … solves that.”

Related Listings
Boston Seaport Office Space for Lease

0 Modern Office Design Melds Flexibility And Privacy

Posted on October 17, 2017 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Biznow

Open plan versus private office the debate continues. It’s likely safe to say that we will end up with some composite of open and collaborative space while maintaining some private offices.

A recent Biznow article describes components of the latest emerging office design trend, dubbed, “activity-based office design”:

The latest model acknowledges that companies may have saved money establishing an open concept floor plan, but in most cases, they did not drive the innovation and collaboration desired. To combat this problem, current designs include areas such as team spaces with standing tables, comfortable couches and movable walls to encourage team meetings and collaboration. The activity-based office design also provides private spaces such as soundproof phone booths or isolation rooms in order to account for moments when intense concentration is needed, or when a confidential conversation needs to take place.

For more information, jump over to Biznow.com.