Category Archives: Boston Real Estate

0 Copley Place will see $500M Expansion

Posted on by
Copley place expansion, graphic rendering

Credit: Bisnow.com

Changes are coming to Copley Place, a 52-story tower to house rental apartments and condos. Currently there is no change to the existing office towers.

Bisnow is reporting that “Simon Property Groups $500M expansion of Copley Place–is advancing with the recent city approval of its revised plan to add rental apartments to the residential mix…Simon will build 433 rental apartments and 109 condos instead of 318 condos in the 625-foot, 52-story tower.”

Additional details are available online, here.

Related Property Listings
Copley Office Space for Lease

0 The Importance of Business Collaboration

Posted on by
Office building on State Street in Boston

255 State Street in Boston

There is something to be said for water bubbler conversations, old fashion face time. In the era of telecommuting and Aps for this and Aps for that companies are trying to their staff be in a position to share ideas with their peers.  The idea seems simple enough, but how do you make it a reality? The question I have for you is do you know what your neighbor does?

A Boston Globe article about business collaboration stresses the advantage of physical networking, even in a world of virtual industry:

“Here’s how it’s supposed to work: Two years ago, Guzzi called Niraj Shah, the cofounder and chief executive of Wayfair, a Boston-based furniture and home goods Internet retailer that generates more sales than Crate and Barrel online. They met over breakfast at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel’s Asana, where Guzzi persuaded Shah to join the chamber. The chamber landed a star e-commerce company, one that now employs more than 900 people in Boston — a 50 percent increase in just a couple of years. Wayfair got fresh connections and a far stronger voice in Boston’s business community.”

The full globe editorial is available on their website: Bostonglobe.com

0 Greenway Site: Normandy Hotel

Posted on by

The last available parcel for the Greenway has now been awarded. The Big Dig project started in the 1991 and was completed in in 2006 and holds the distinction of the most expensive highway project in the U.S.

Parcel 9 Hanover Street

Credit: Boston Business Journal

“Five years after the state offered up one of the last remaining parcels along Boston’s Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway for sale, Normandy Real Estate Partners’ bid for a hotel has been selected….Normandy’s proposed development calls for mid-priced hotel and a first-floor food market to complement the adjacent Haymarket Pushcart Association produce market,” a Boston Business Journal report noted.

The complete article is available on the Boston Business Journal’s website: MassDOT chooses Normandy hotel

Related Real Estate Listings
Boston Office Space for Lease

0 157 Berkeley Street is 8th Largest Office Building in Back Bay

Posted on by
Berkeley Street office building in Boston's Back Bay

Photo Credit: Boston Business Journal

Back Bay’s newest address unveiled in a big way; in fact, 157 Berkeley Street opened as the 8th largest office building in Back Bay.

Here’s the complete list:

1.      John Hancock Tower – 200 Clarendon Street – 1,755,398 RSF

2.      The Prudential – 800 Boylston Street – 1,207499 RSF

3.      111 Huntington Avenue – 859,053 RSF

4.      500 Boylston Street – 760,000 RSF

5.      200 Berkeley Street – 747,000

6.      131 Dartmouth Street – 609,000 RSF

7.      501 Boylston Street – 607,685

8.      157 Berkeley Street – 580,000

The newly completed 157 Berkeley St. will serve as the new Back Bay HQ of Liberty Mutual. The Boston Business Journal covered the ribbon cutting ceremony at the new 22-story office building in the Back Bay, and described the scope of the project:

“Liberty Mutual broke ground on the $300 million expansion project in 2010. The 590,000-square-foot building at 157 Berkeley St. building will accommodate more than 600 new, full-time Liberty Mutual Insurance employees at the expanded Boston offices.”

The complete BBJ article is available on the Boston Business Journal website.

0 Construction to Begin on ‘Ink Block’

Posted on by
Graphic rendering of the Ink Block in Boston's South End

Photo Credit: Elkus Manfredi (via BBJ)

Ink Block is on the move and the transformation of the Herald’s HQ will commence later this year.

The Boston Business Journal reports on the construction, noting the Ink Block is “designed to re-imagine the former Herald site in the South End at Harrison Avenue and Traveler Street, Ink Block will feature 475 apartments in five buildings and 85,000 square feet of retail space, including a flagship 50,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market, which will be the chain’s largest location in Boston and the first-ever full-size grocery store in the South End.”

For additional information on the former Boston Herald HQ, jump over to the BBJ’s full article.

0 Office Rents in Boston On the Rise

Posted on by
Commercial real estate construction in boston

Photo Credit: Boston Globe

As the recovery takes hold, office rents are rising accordingly across all submarkets in Boston’s Central Business District.

According to a Boston Globe editorial, “the Boston-area office market has almost fully recovered from the economic downturn, with companies filling up large chunks of space and driving a steady uptick in rents…the influx has pushed the vacancy rate below 10 percent for the first time since the end of 2009 — a threshold that often triggers larger rent hikes and even speculative construction activity.”

Additional details are available on the BostonGlobe.com..

 

0 Fidelity Puts Four Boston Office Properties Up for Sale

Posted on by
office building at 82 devonshire street in Boston financial district

Photo Credit: Boston Herald

Will the Financial District be home to a new office tower?  There is some speculation that the headquarters of Fidelity will be raised to make way for new construction.

Banker & Tradesman is reporting, “the real estate arm of Boston-based Fidelity Investments is putting four Boston office properties and a small land parcel in the city’s Financial District on the shopping block. The contiguous block of assets totals 343,000 square feet of space and includes 82 and 68 Devonshire St., 19 and 15 Congress St., and the land parcel at 54 Devonshire St.”

Details on the potential redevelopment site are available on the Banker & Tradesman website.

Related Area Info
Office Space in Boston Seaport District
Boston Financial District Real Estate

0 Is One Lincoln Street Stagnation a Sign of Larger Trend?

Posted on by
State Street Financial Center at 1 lincoln

Photo Credit: Boston Business Journal

The office market is in the midst of an upswing as it pertains to rents, but from the value side, buyers are cautious. Have we peaked or is there more to come?

The Boston Business Journal article reported on the relative stagnation, noting that “twenty months after One Lincoln Street ­— also known as the State Street Financial Center — was put up for sale, the skyscraper remains on the market for $1.15 billion.”

Follow the link to read more about One Lincoln Street.

0 Leasing Agreement and Construction Activity at Filene’s Site

Posted on by
Construction site at Filene's in downtown Boston

Photo Credit: Boston Globe

The stock market recently closed at levels just above the market high of December 2007, which points to our national recovery. Locally, the hole in the ground — formerly known as Filene’s in Downtown Crossing — should soon be filled in, as our economy continues to grow out of the hole created in 2008.

The Boston Globe notes the importance of the hub landmark, “the Filene’s redevelopment is crucial to the broader campaign of revitalizing downtown Boston and its shopping district. Positioned at the center of Downtown Crossing, it would bring an influx of new residents and stores to an area that has just begun to shrug off a reputation as a ­second-rate retail destination.”

Jump over to the Boston Globe for more information on the impending leasing agreement and restart of construction at Filene’s. Alternatively, click through to view office space for lease in the downtown area.

0 Boston’s New Developments Showcased on the BBJ

Posted on by
Kensington apartment building on washington street in boston

Photo Credit: Boston Business Journal

Nine new Boston development projects are scheduled to open in 2013 and the calendar is filling up with 2014 openings as well.  Our city landscape is changing with new residential communities and office buildings.

The Boston Business Journal posted a preview of the upcoming buildings in a slide show, here.