Category Archives: Office Space in Fort Point Channel

0 Cape Air targets Boston’s Long Wharf as a seaplane docking spot

Posted on by

Seaplanes are making waves in Boston.  Boston Harbor last saw seaplanes in the 1940’s and as the congestion continues worsen it appears they will be making a comeback for trips to NYC.

Cape Air targets Boston’s Long Wharf as a seaplane docking spot

The Boston skyline is viewed from Long Wharf.
GARY HIGGINS

By   – Real Estate Editor, Boston Business Journal | 

 

Cape Air has its eyes on a new location on Boston Harbor to launch its long-planned seaplane service between Boston and New York: Long Wharf.

Officials from the Hyannis-based airline will host a public meeting Wednesday, Dec. 18 at the Long Wharf Marriott to discuss “a proposal to serve Boston Waterboat Marina, 66 Long Wharf, with a 9-seat seaplane airline service available to the public.”

Andrew Bonney, senior vice president of planning for Cape Air, said in an interview that the airline has worked with officials including the Federal Aviation Administration, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Boston Planning and Development Agency regarding launching a Cessna Caravan Amphibian between Boston and New York.

Cape Air flights would load at the tip of Long Wharf before taxiing one mile out to Boston Logan International Airport’s Runway 1432 and taking off, Bonney said. The flights would use the same spot for landing.

Before the service can launch, Cape Air would need to obtain a license amendment from the BPDA, which owns Long Wharf.

“The BPDA has asked Cape Air to conduct a community process, including stakeholder outreach, about their proposal for Long Wharf before anything can move forward,” spokesperson Bonnie McGilpin said in a statement. “If there is support for the proposal, BPDA would need to amend the license for Long Wharf to reflect these uses and that would require approval by the BPDA Board.”

If Cape Air receives the city license amendment and other federal regulatory requirements, Bonney hopes to launch by springtime.

A one-way flight would cost between $320 and $340 to travel the 191 miles between the two cities, according to Bonney. Traveling by plane or train from Boston to New York typically takes around three and a half hours, while a seaplane can go downtown to downtown in one hour, he said.

In the 1920s, seaplanes going between Boston and New York would dock behind South Station. But seaplane service hasn’t existed in Boston since the 1940s.

“We think it’s really exciting to be able to bring back this mode of transportation to the city of Boston,” Bonney said.

Catherine Carlock can be reached at ccarlock@bizjournals.com. Follow her on Twitter at @BosBizCatherine 

0 The Creation of a Neighborhood: Boston’s Seaport

Posted on by
Boston Seaport sq.

Credit: BBJ

What does it take to build a neighborhood in Boston? The creation of the Seaport is just that: in just over a decade we have gone from dirt lots, through planning, to a famed destination location that supports life, work & play.

Urbanland recounts a number of key milestones that propelled the development of the contemporary Boston Seaport:

With the completion of the Big Dig, it became clear that there was “an opportunity to develop a new city” in the Seaport, recounts Charles Leatherbee, director of development for Skanska USA, which has constructed multiple office and residential projects there since, including a 225,000-square-foot (21,000 sq m) office project in the marine park that broke ground in June. Observes Leatherbee, “Make no mistake, the Seaport has access to the single greatest resource the city has—the harbor—and they’ve been able to develop something quite cool, in my view.”

Additional Market Info
• Boston Seaport Real Estate
• Office Space for Lease in Boston Seaport

 

0 Who’s Going to Fund the Northern Avenue Bridge Renovations?

Posted on by
South Boston, Seaport Northern ave bridge

Credit: Banker&Tradesman

Should the bridge be used by developers or not?  Well, they might not actually cross it, but fund the renovations for it.  Why you ask, zoning relief.

From Banker&Tradesman:

An advisory group of stakeholders – ranging from walking and bicycling advocates to preservationists and Seaport businesses – has discussed a public-private partnership as a funding source, said member Greg Galer, executive director of the Boston Preservation Alliance…The group has been meeting since December and will submit a recommendation to Walsh as soon as next month.

“There’s benefits to the development community from this bridge,” Galer said. “You see all of the complaints from their employees who work over the bridge, and the neighborhood constituents such as the Barking Crab (restaurant) and Hook Lobster properties.”

 

0 Seaport District, Fort Point Channel Thriving

Posted on by
seaport office space

Credit: Bostonsf

The Seaport continues to show the market that it’s going to remain a dominate force in the Boston office market.  Rents are up, vacancy is down and demand is strong.  The challenge is the only new construction is Class A, so if you are seeking updated brick-and-bean, wait in line or be prepared to pay for it.

Alternatives that trade about $8 – $12 per square below would be Boston’s Financial District or the Leather District.

Indicative of the Seaport neighborhood’s appeal, BostonSF.com reports HFF recently closed a “$105.625 million sale of 3-building office portfolio Boston’s Seaport District…HFF announced that it has closed sale of three best-in-class, creative office assets totaling 221,064 square feet and 35 parking spaces.”

You can read more about the significant, three-building office space sale in the Seaport on Bostonsf.com.

0 Seaport Bridge Closed for Repairs

Posted on by

The Seaport just got harder to get to and from.  Not only are there fewer parking spaces, now there is one less pedestrian walkway from the Financial District to the Seaport.  The ultimate plan is to reopen the bridge to cars and pedestrian traffic, but no date has been given.

closed bridge in south boston Seaport District

Credit: Boston Herald

A Boston Herald report states “structural conditions and “deterioration beyond repair” prompted the city to close the Old Northern Avenue bridge that serves as a pedestrian link between South Boston’s Seaport District and the Financial District…analysis of the 106-year-old truss bridge’s load capacity by TranSystems, a transportation consultant hired by the city, found 13 floor beams with a “zero-ton rating” in the part of the bridge that was open to pedestrians crossing the Fort Point Channel.”

Additional details are available on the Boston Herald’s website.

0 Boston Wharf Co. Building at 51 Melcher Sells for $52.7M

Posted on by

For $513.49 PSF Synergy Investments has sold 51 Melcher Street to Zurich North America. The building went through a complete renovation and was delivered fully leased to WeWork, Life is Good, and NetSuite.

According to Banker & Tradesman, “Synergy spent millions of dollars repositioning the building in the market, including base building renovations, a new main entrance and lobby, HVAC systems, new and restored windows and new roof, restrooms, plumbing, electrical service and elevators.”

Pricing with the Seaport Class B Market now is running in the upper $30’s to low $40’s PSF.

Class B office space in Boston

Click to view the full size graphic

0 Two Summer Street Office Buildings Sold

Posted on by
321 Summer St. Boston

321 Summer St. in Boston (click  to view additional property details)

More trades in the Seaport’s red hot office Market.  The Seaport Class B office lease rates are hovering just around $40 PSF in the first year.

Drawing national coverage, the Wall Street Journal reported on the recent Seaport transactions of 281 Summer Street and 321 Summer Street in Boston, MA. The Journal notes, “the two building portfolio is in Boston’s Seaport District and totals 243,000 square feet of office and retail space. Newly renovated, the properties are well-located in the heart of Boston’s Fort Port Channel neighborhood.”

The WSJ article on the Boston Seaport is available, here.

You can view additional details on both of the Summer Street buildings on our property listing pages:

321 Summer Street, Boston Seaport

281 Summer Street, Boston Seaport

0 Boston Seaport Attracts Tech and Biotech Start-ups

Posted on by
2 Seaport Lane, Boston Seaport district

World Trade Center East, 2 Seaport Lane

Boston continues to expand into the Seaport.  The once-famed $7-per-day-dirt parking lots have been replaced with corporate office space for the biotech industry, law firms, financial services and newly funded technology companies.  Did this happen overnight?  Well, no.  The Ted Williams Tunnel to the airport, and onramp to Mass Turnpike East and West fostered accessibility and spurred new opportunity. That level of infrastructure was the catalyst of for our current development cycle, combined with demand for residential and office development.

The Boston Globe states:

“The new face of Boston’s Seaport is the old face of the city’s downtown. The lawyers and accountants who are financing the waterfront construction boom are abandoning Boston’s historic commercial center for something newer and more exciting. This exodus is opening up cheaper commercial space for creative firms and tech companies…Boston’s downtown and its waterfront are slowly swapping identities.”

More information on the Seaport’s transition is provided in the Boston Globe’s full article.

Alternatively, you can view our listings for currently available office space in the Seaport.

0 Boston Startups: Rent Desks from WeWork

Posted on by
Office buildings on Melcher st in Boston

Credit: fortpointchannelboston

Mobility seems to be the cornerstone for the general population.  Be it a smart phone or a tablet, we are on the phone and don’t wish to be tethered.  The same is true for office space; CEO’s today are looking for flexibility with a collaborative environment, not a long-term lease. Desk and office rental is the solution. Pay for exactly what you need, when you need it.

The wait is over. Boston businesses now have a new, dedicated outlet for desk rentals and office space: WeWork. According to the Boston Herald, “what separates WeWork from other “co-working spaces” is the sense of community they build…there is a sports lounge in the basement of WeWork Seaport in Fort Point, complete with arcade games, a pool table and kegs. Members also get access to WeWork companies across the country for possible partnerships.”

Additional information on WeWork is available in the Boston Herald article.

0 MBTA Commuter Rail Heading to Seaport District

Posted on by
Commuter rail tract to seaport

Credit: Boston Globe

Connecting North Station to South Station would be great, but better would be Back Bay to the Seaport.  Boston is on track to continue to invest in infrastructure that better our places to work and live.  The use of track 61 will be a welcome addition to those that travelers to and from the Seaport/Innovation District.

The Boston Globe is reporting that “the state, with no fanfare, has set aside tens of millions of dollars to launch an innovative train service on a dormant rail line between a pair of the city’s most vital neighborhoods: the Seaport District and the Back Bay…The service should be ready to go in just two years.”

Jump over to the Boston Globe to read more: Rail Service between Seaport District and Back Bay