Author Archives: Wil Catlin

0 Boston Harbor Ferry to Add Destinations

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Boston waterfront ferry

Credit: B&T

Ferry service in Boston Harbor is looking to add new destinations.

According to Banker and Tradesman, “at public meetings during the summer, many attendees requested more inner harbor service…[while] outside of Boston, the report recommended expanding commuter ferry service from Hingham, Hull, Lynn, Quincy, Salem and Winthrop and starting a new service from Dorchester’s Columbia Point.”

The goal is to begin expanded service in 2019.

For additional information, continue on to Bander and Tradesman’s website to read its complete coverage.

0 Seaport Square Project May Yield Waterfront Library

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Rendering of potential Boston waterfront Library in Seaport

Credit: Boston Globe

The Seaport is poised to get a library, but let’s wait to see if it materializes in Boston’s booming commercial real estate sector.

From the Boston Globe:

[State Representative Nick] Collins, a Democrat who represents South Boston, is among those who have complained that the burgeoning district is being built without enough of the places — like a library — that make a neighborhood feel like home. As WS Development finalized plans to put housing, office buildings, and retail on 12.5 acres of parking lots, Collins pressed the developer to add a library to the project, known as Seaport Square.

But when the Boston Planning & Development Agency approved the developer’s plan Nov. 16, it required two performing arts centers, but no library. That same week, however, Collins inserted a provision into a large state bond bill that would set aside $10 million for “creation and construction of a Boston Public Library branch on the South Boston Waterfront.”

0 Employees Want Climate Control and Office Personalization

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Purdue Center for High Performance Buildings

Credit: Purdue University

Simply put – employees want to be comfortable. Many new cars have dual temperature control for both front-seat passengers, and separate controls for the rear. Office employees simply want the same ability to customize their climate and control their environment – from their personal devices.

From Bisnow:

New research conducted by Purdue University’s Center for High Performance Buildings shows that people who were able to easily control temperature and lighting from their computer were more actively engaged during the day than those who had to get up and use a traditional wall-mounted control…The former also showed higher levels of productivity and had better cognitive test results than the group that did not have direct control over their surroundings.

“By giving people the choice to use more daylight and feel more connected to the outdoor environment, you can optimize productivity and use less energy,” CHPB researcher and associate professor Panagiota Karava said in a statement.

0 Modern Office Tenants Redefine how Commercial Buildings are Measured

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Building Owners and Managers Association International logo

Credit: Boma

Why are office building measurements getting redefined? In short, buildings are creating more common areas and outdoor amenities to accommodate today’s tenancy. The changes put forth this past October by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International are designed to account for the way young talent is seeking out and utilizing outdoor space – like rooftop terraces, balconies, etc.

From Seeking Alpha:

“The 2017 standard really reflects the changes that are happening in the marketplace,” BOMA International Chair Rob Brierley told VTS. He’s also an executive vice president at Colliers Boston. “There has been such an increasing demand for well-appointed exterior amenities like balconies, covered galleries and finished rooftop terraces. If the tenant is taking advantage of it, the rationality is they should also now include it as part of the rentable square footage… It’s a more clear and accurate representation of how tenants are actually using space.”

“Over the last decade, the amenity packages that folks are asking for is changing so quickly,” Brierley added. “Today if you don’t have a roof deck or patio, you’re definitely at a disadvantage in many ways…. The reality is if you go out to any building that has a patio or roof deck, everybody’s using it. It’s not just the millennials. It really has been an extension of their respective offices, which is one of the reasons this change has occurred.”

0 Nap Rooms and Wellness Metrics Reshape Office Space

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sleeping at office

Credit: Crain’s New York

When listing amenities for buildings, beyond bike rooms and common area Wi-Fi, is a new addition: nap rooms. Soon to occupy space in Class A office towers around Boston, the new commercial real estate staple is quickly becoming adopted to cater to our changing workforce. By 2020, millennials will make up 40-50% of the working population.

Due in part to the increasing focus placed on the impact of work on occupants’ physical and mental well-being, a new scoring system has been devised to quantify office buildings’ use of wellness amenities.

From Crains New York:

Similar to LEED certification, which measures a building’s environmental sustainability, Fitwel’s system tracks various factors, from signs encouraging workers to take the stairs and wash their hands to more particular features such as lactation rooms and air purification systems. The availability of natural light is also considered a plus because it helps tenants keep their circadian rhythms in sync.

“Of millennials, 78% rate the quality of the workplace as one of the most important benefits of working at a particular company,” [Joanna Frank, president and CEO of the Center for Active Design] said. “They want to be working where there’s an overt emphasis on quality of life. Companies are realizing they need to offer it to attract and retain talent.”

0 Location and Internet Top Office Tenants’ List of Criteria

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Internet and Connectivity define modern office space

Credit: WiredScore

Access to high quality internet is key; without that, today’s office doesn’t work.

From Law.com:

“Tenants want an assurance that their building’s infrastructure will meet their connectivity needs in the immediate, but also in the future, regardless of whatever technological leaps are in store for their business down the road,” says Arie Barendrecht, WiredScore’s founder and CEO.

After location, the second most important factor in a tenant’s current space, according to a study by Radius Global Market Research and WiredScore, is the quality of internet connectivity. When it comes to evaluating future space needs, connectivity takes pride of place, with price and location ranked second and third in priority.

0 Smart Buildings Will Reshape Office Space

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Soon your office building could follow the same path as the new iPhone X: facial recognition.

Connected buildings IoT

Credit: Biznow

Excerpts from Biznow:

Operating systems such as Nantum are one step closer to achieving the true AI experience, which is intuitive and self-improving, by using machine learning to act as the “brain” of a building. With the brain in place, Nantum can create memories of the building’s performance in order to develop algorithms that will ultimately serve to keep iterating and improving on the systems of the building, including its energy and efficiency.
 
A shift toward advanced technologies is beginning to take shape with facial recognition software emerging in some buildings as a way to allow employees to safely enter the office without the use of a security card.
 
“When people talk about IoT, sensor technology is probably having the biggest impact on buildings and space,” Pope said.

You can read more on IoT and smart office technology on Biznow.

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

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Laws firms are dramatically changing the way they use space.

tech forward law firm offices

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

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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?

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Gondola in city, like Boston

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.”

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