0 TD Towers Seeks to Elevate Boston Skyline

Posted on February 6, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Is the TD Towers too tall for the neighborhood? Well, yes and no, Boston is growing and new projects need height to make them work. The low-rise buildings that were constructed during the early part of the last century are a thing of the past.

Credit: Boston Magazine

Boston Magazine recently reported on a controversy surrounding the proposed size of TD Towers, noting “the project opens the door to many more like it, which would turn the West End into another skyscraper orchard. It’s not hard to see where they’re coming from. When you compare the project with towers elsewhere in Boston, it fits right in. But as you can see above, it will dwarf its neighbors in the West End.”

The full Boston Magazine article can be found, here.

0 Fenway Center Banking on Tax Break

Posted on January 30, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Credit: The Boston Globe

Will the new mayor offer concessions where Menino wouldn’t? Fenway Center is an aggressive project that bridges the Turnpike between Fenway and Kenmore. Over the years, projects like this have fallen short due to the cost of construction and the inability to secure appropriate financing.

According to The Boston Globe, the developer of Fenway Center is asking for a significant tax break for the new project:

In a last-ditch effort to save one of the city’s largest construction projects, developer John Rosenthal is asking Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh’s administration for a $7.8 million tax break to help build a massive complex of buildings near Fenway Park…“John’s a good man and I know he’s been working on this project for a long time,” Walsh said in a recent interview with The Boston Globe. “We’re going to look at [his proposal] and do what’s best for the city.”

The full article is available to online subscribers of The Boston Globe.

0 Five Noteworthy Retailers Headed to Newbury Street

Posted on January 30, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Newbury Collection of retail stores on Newbury Street in Boston

Credit: TheNewburyCollection

Newbury Street has some new attractions, from food to 3-D printing.

A list of five new, noteworthy inhabitants of Boston’s Newbury Street was compiled by the Boston Globe yesterday:

“The Newbury Collection, a stretch of boutiques, spas, and restaurants that run along nearly the full length of Boston’s fashionable Newbury Street, has signed leases with five new tenants, including Drybar, a now-open blow-dry bar, and a burger joint called Shake Shake that is expected to open in September, said Jamestown, the real estate firm that owns the portfolio.”

The full article is available to Boston Globe subscribers.

0 Dudley Square Startup Space to Open this Summer

Posted on January 30, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Office building in Dudley Square in Boston

Credit: Boston.com

Did your company just get funded? Do you dread going downtown? Well, Roxbury will be home for startup space.

Boston.com recently reported on the emerging start-up incubator:

Rosenzweig’s non-profit, Smarter in the City, hopes to have an incubator up and running by June, with space for a half-dozen companies. But he’s still in the process of rounding up prospective corporate sponsors to support the idea, and applying for grants from The Boston Foundation and others.

The full Boston.com article is available, here

0 888 Boylston Street Office Tower Sets 2014 Launch

Posted on January 30, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Credit: The Real Reporter

Back Bay continues its foothold as strongest office market in New England. The Boston Marathon and Duck Tour Parade route will pass Boston Properties’ newest landmark tower, 888 Boylston Street which is schedule to start construction in Spring of 2014.

According to The Real Reporter, “Prudential Center owner Boston Properties has an office tenant in tow that would enable the proposed 17-story, 442,000-sf building to proceed. Market sources claim Natixis Global Asset Management, a French conglomerate that owns homegrown Copley Real Estate Advisors, is negotiating for an estimated 115,000 sf to facilitate a relocation from its 399 Boylston St. home a few blocks east on the opposite side of the Back Bay boulevard.”

Additional details are available in the Real Reporter’s post.

0 22 Batterymarch Street in Boston Sells for $10.5M

Posted on January 24, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Office building on batterymarch street in Boston

Credit: Boston Business Journal

The Class B trades continue in the Financial District with 22 Batterymarch for $300 per square foot. As the vacancy continues to drop and lease rates increase, we will see more sellers coming to the table in coming months.

A BBJ article offers details and background on the property at 22 Batterymarch:

Built in the 1890s, the 35,000-square-foot Class B office building once served as the Harvard Club. Around 30 years ago, the property was converted into a multitenant office facility. The seven-story building was acquired by Taurus in 1998 for $4.4 million. It is assessed at $5.3 million.

The complete article is available on the Boston Business Journal.

0 Mixed-Use Office Buildings Remain Popular in Boston

Posted on January 24, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Banker & Tradesman

For Boston’s Central Business District, 2014 with be similar to 2013. Continued rent growth in the Class A and B office market with office vacancy continuing to decline. Mixed-use office space should also be front-and-center.

From Banker and Tradesman:

“Most urban projects that are on the drawing pad today have some mixed-use component, even if it’s just ground-floor retail,” said Shawn Hurley, executive vice president for Skanska USA Commercial Development in Boston. “That is reflective of the desire to strengthen the urban nature of these buildings, with pedestrian access and activity along the streets.”

The complete, related B&T article can be found, here.

0 Boston Office Market Shifts to the Financial District

Posted on January 8, 2014 by Wil Catlin

The Downtown Boston Office Market continues to be strong as firms seek better value options than the high-priced Seaport or Back Bay submarkets. Pricing in the Class B market is still in the low-to-mid $30’s PSF downtown, while the Seaport has pushed into the low to mid $40’s.

B&T recently reported that “the popularity of the Seaport and Back Bay, where office building vacancy rates have been at historical lows in recent months, has been a boon to the city’s traditionally staid, button-down financial center, where younger and tech-related firms have opened up shop.”

Additional information is available on the Banker & Tradesman website.

0 Steinert Hall still lingering below Boylston

Posted on December 23, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Credit: The Boston Globe

What sits below our city streets? Well, along piano row sits Steinert Hall, an “acoustic marvel” as one has noted. The value of Boston real estate continues upwards, and perhaps — at some point — treasure like Steinert Hall will reap the benefits of restoration and welcome guests again.

The Boston Globe describes Steinert Hall as the following:

a state-of-the-art theater when it was constructed a century ago deep beneath Boylston Street, once attracted some of the world’s finest classical musicians. Long shuttered, it remains largely out of public sight, a ghost figure on the cultural landscape.

The Globe articles includes much more detail on the theater, accompanied by some stunning images. The article is available on the BostonGlobe.com.

0 Builders Consider Wind Power

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Banker & Tradesman

As we all try harder to recycle and become a greener society, one group has looked up. Way up. Is it possible and feasible to have wind farms atop office towers? At a cost, yes; but is there an adequate return on investment?

Banker & Tradesman recently reported on a Cambridge-based startup that is exploring the use of wind power on an office tower:

One such cleantech startup based in Cambridge has designed its own version of a vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) that stands from 26 to 40 feet tall, with a 20-foot diameter, a far cry from the turbines in, say, Falmouth, where the towers rise more than 260 feet into the air and can be seen for miles around…But instead of the turbines themselves being towers, Eastern Wind Power’s founders want to put their turbines on top of existing and new urban office towers.

The full article on sustainable office towers is available on B&T.