0 Leasing Office Space in Boston: Do you start with Google?

Posted on October 5, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Your business is growing and you’ve just secured your second round of funding; how do you search for your new office? Do you rely on a market expert or do you prefer to go at it alone?

A recent survey from RE:Tech › Insight notes “more than one-forth (25 percent) of early stage tech startups search commercial real estate broker. When beginning their online search, 90 percent of tech startups directly search for office space online without a broker in mind…the survey found that three quarters (75 percent) of tech startups don’t search for commercial real estate brokers.”

0 Indoor Farmers’ Market in Boston will Open July 30th

Posted on June 29, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Government Center and North Station have a new amenity: Boston Public Market, a year-round, 28,000-square-foot indoor farmers’ market. The market will consist of 35 different providers with operational hours from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.

Credit: Boston Business Journal

From Bizjournals.com:

The 28,000-square-foot non-profit market at 100 Hanover St. — above the Haymarket MBTA station — will house over 35 farmers, fishermen, and food producers from Massachusetts and throughout New England, selling items such as farm fresh produce; meat and poultry; eggs; milk and cheese; fish and shellfish; bread and baked goods; flowers; and an assortment of specialty and prepared foods…The Boston Public Market is a public-private partnership made possible with the support of Massachusetts and the commitment of over $9 million in private philanthropy from various donors.

0 186 Lincoln Street Sells for $20.6M

Posted on June 2, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Lincoln Street office building in Boston

Credit: Banker&Tradesman

Building trades continue with Brickman of New York acquiring 186 Lincoln Street for just over $300 per square foot.
Banker&Tradesman offered context on the sale, indicating “the 68,526-square-foot multi-tenant office building near South Station is 70 percent leased, with tenants including Roche Diagnostics, Full Contact and Greystone Solutions…The South Station submarket contains 1.3 million square feet of office space in 22 buildings, 85 percent of which is class B product.”

You can read the full B&T article, here.

0 226 Causeway Street Sold to Invesco for $92M

Posted on May 18, 2015 by Wil Catlin

The Causeway

Invesco is the new owner of 226 Causeway Street for $476.68 per square foot. Tenants include the following:

• TripAdvisors
• Oxfam America
• Grant Thornton
• Stantec
• Boston Celtics
• March Communications

According to the BBJ, “the property was sold by Spear Street Capital, a real estate investment fund with offices in New York and San Francisco. Spear Street acquired 226 Causeway St. in 2011 for $43 million…First-quarter office rents averaged $32.95 in the North Station neighborhood, with 4.5 percent office vacancy, according to JLL.”

You can read more about the Causeway Street sale on the Boston Business Journal.

0 Multiple Projects from Boston Properties Progressing

Posted on May 7, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston Herald

Boston Properties is bullish on Boston with projects underway or proposed from Back Bay, Financial District and North Station.

· 888 Boylston has seen the crane arrive and has announced is major tenant Natixis Global Asset Management
· 100 Federal Street is looking to add more retail on the Congress Street side of the project

From the Boston Herald:

“In 2015, we estimate we could move approximately $1 billion in pre-development projects into our active development pipeline,” CEO Owen Thomas said. “Before launching any of these projects, we need to complete the entitlement and planning process and, in most cases, some level of pre-leasing.”

0 The Landmark Building at 160 Federal St. Sold to Beacon Capital

Posted on April 29, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

Beacon Capital continues to add to their portfolio by purchasing 160 Federal Street with is located at the corner of Federal St. and High St.

According to the BBJ, “the deal for the 351,000-square-foot, 24-story Landmark Building “was financed with a $96.2 million mortgage from Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., a separate Suffolk County record shows. The mortgage was executed April 10…Taurus bought 160 Federal St. in April 2007 for $101.4 million, Suffolk County records show.”

Additional details are available on the Bizjournals.com.

0 50 Post Office Square in Boston Hits the Market

Posted on April 27, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: The Real Reporter

50 Post Office Square is coming to market and could reap $300 million. The building last traded for $192 million ($245.43/SF) on 9/29/08. The new sales number would put this at $383.48/SF. The current ownership has done a remarkable job not only repositioning the asset, but leasing it up as well. Of the 782,304 total square feet there is only 118,500 square feet available on the 5th and 6th floors.

From the Real Reporter:

Besides the current investment climate that has Boston among the most popular destinations for institutional and foreign capital, observers claim the move is likely a combination of the natural life cycle of the landlord’s tenure in the property that began in Oct. 2008 when the 600,000-sf structure was acquired for $192 million with partner Commonwealth Ventures. “They figure this is the right time to do it,” says the source who praises Bentall and CV for repositioning an Art Deco building dating to 1948 that was badly in need of an overhaul when the asset previously known as 185 Franklin St. was offered up for sale by Verizon.

0 Downtown Crossing Grocery Store to Open on April 29th

Posted on April 20, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BBJ

On April 29th you will now be able to buy everything from shiitake mushrooms to fresh salmon at Downtown Crossing in Boston. Roch Bros. Supermarket will be opening their 25,000 square foot store at 8 Summer Street with hours from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. through 9 p.m. on Sundays.

Some background from the Boston Business Journal:

“The store will be the first supermarket in Boston’s Downtown Crossing neighborhood…[and] will employ 70 full-time and more than 200 part-time workers. Larry Baxter, an associate since 1983, will be store manager, while 16-year Roche Bros. veterans Marvin Alvarez and Krystle Bredeson will be assistant managers.“

0 Newbury Street Real Estate Goes in ‘Hub Buying Spree’

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: The Real Reporter

Urban Meritage closes on another piece of Newbury Street real estate by adding 50,000 rentable square feet.

From The Real Reporter:

Bringing its CRE holdings secured here to 11 properties in just 21 months, the partnership of Urban Meritage and Novaya Ventures (UMNV) has taken a giant step forth in purchasing the hulking six-story 126 Newbury St. from its longtime New York owner in an eye-popping $54.2 million deal consummated earlier today. Rudin Management’s trade brings UMNV’s portfolio of assets focused along the famed shopping boulevard to nearly $150 million, blowing past the $100 million level in one fell swoop and giving the firm three prime buildings between Berkeley and Exeter Streets, the latest on the third block up from the Boston Public Garden and next to the second block where UMNV began its platform via the $10.0 million.

0 Faneuil Hall Renovation Detailed

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BostInno

Faneuil Hall is looking to make some changes. A 180 room hotel, freshened up food court and a shake up of existing tenants.

From Bostinno.Streetwise:

The updates to Quincy Market, which include the new retailers, the hotel and more developments, are all part of Ashkenazy’s plan to make Faneuil Hall more attractive to those living in Boston…we also learned that Faneuil’s notorious brick walkways could be repaved with smooth granite, with benches replaced by movable chairs, drastically changing the marketplace’s familiar and historical facade – but making it easier to walk, especially for those in heels.

Past coverage of the impending changes in Faneuil Hall have filtered in from both the Boston Globe(in September) and the New York Times (in early December). While today’s City Council meeting was held in regards to the impact on pushcart vendors in Faneuil Hall, the conversation focused on the many alterations slated for the marketplace. The redevelopment is in its early stages, and some of the proposed changes would require the BRA’s Article 80 review.