Massachusetts

Gilbane Building Tops Out 500,000 SF Life Sciences Project in Metro Boston

by Taylor Williams November 3, 2020

WALTHAM, MASS. — General contractor Gilbane Building Co. has topped out 225 Wyman Street, a 500,000-square-foot life sciences project in the western Boston suburb of Waltham. Designed by Gensler, the property will offer space for both laboratory/research and development users as well as traditional office users. Amenities will include green space with walking trails, a three-acre courtyard, fitness center, conference center, dining facility and a 1,500-space covered parking garage with electric vehicle charging stations. Hobbs Brook Management LLC is the developer of the project, which is expected to be complete in March 2022.

November 3, 2020

Company News Massachusetts Northeast Restaurant Retail

Restaurant Chain Friendly’s Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, Enters into Sale Agreement

by Taylor Williams November 3, 2020

WILBRAHAM, MASS. — FIC Restaurants Inc., which operates the Friendly’s brand, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and entered in an agreement to sell all of its assets to Amici Partners Group LLC. Nearly all of Friendly’s 130 corporate-owned and franchised restaurant locations, known for burgers, sandwiches and ice cream, are expected to remain open subject to COVID-19 limitations. Friendly’s stated that it has sufficient cash on hand to continue operations, meet its obligations to employees, franchisees and vendors. Upon the sale closing, Amici expects to retain most employees at Friendly’s corporate-owned restaurant locations. Amici is an affiliate of BRIX Holdings, an owner-operator whose brands include Red Mango Yogurt Café Smoothie & Juice Bar, Smoothie Factory Juice Bar, RedBrick Pizza Kitchen Café and Souper Salad.

November 3, 2020

Development Massachusetts Multifamily Northeast Seniors Housing

DiMella Shaffer Completes Second Expansion at Seniors Housing Property in Lexington, Massachusetts

by Taylor Williams November 2, 2020

LEXINGTON, MASS. — DiMella Shaffer, a Boston-based architecture and design firm, has completed its second expansion project for the 26-acre Brookhaven at Lexington seniors housing community located north of Boston. The project featured renovations to all common areas, and expansion and improvements to the assisted care and long-term care facility. A four-story wing that houses new amenities has also been added. Brookhaven Senior Living owns the property.

November 2, 2020

Company News Georgia Massachusetts Northeast Retail Southeast Top Stories

Inspire Brands Agrees to Acquire Dunkin’ in $11.3B Transaction

by Taylor Williams November 2, 2020

ATLANTA AND CANTON, MASS. — Inspire Brands has agreed to acquire fast-food breakfast chain Dunkin’ Brands (NASDAQ: DNKN) in a transaction valued at $11.3 billion. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year. Atlanta-based Inspire Brands is the parent company of restaurant chains such as Arby’s, Jimmy John’s, Sonic Drive-In and Buffalo Wild Wings. In addition to its namesake coffee and breakfast chain, Canton, Mass.-based Dunkin’ Brands also owns ice cream parlor chain Baskin-Robbins, which respectively have about 12,500 and 8,000 locations worldwide. Dunkin’ has about 9,600 locations in the United States. The deal’s price tag equates to $106.50 per share, to be paid in cash, and includes the assumption of all Dunkin’ Brands’ debt. The share price represents a 30 percent premium over the Dunkin’ Brands 30-day weighted average price and a 20 percent premium over its closing stock price of $88.79 per share on Friday, Oct. 23. “We are excited to bring meaningful value to shareholders who have been with us on this journey and believe that Inspire Brands, a preeminent operator of franchised restaurant concepts, will continue to drive growth for our franchisees while remaining true to all that is unique and special …

November 2, 2020

Development Massachusetts Multifamily Northeast

Mill Creek Begins Leasing Two Boston-Area Apartment Communities Totaling 518 Units

by Taylor Williams October 30, 2020

BOSTON — Mill Creek Residential has begun leasing Modera Framingham and Modera Marshfield, two apartment communities totaling 518 units in the Boston area. Modera Framingham offers studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom homes and amenities such as a central courtyard, 24-hour fitness studio, media room, clubhouse with coffee bar, a pet park and pet spa, cyber café and a game room. Modera Marshfield offers the same unit mix and a similar suite of amenities. Mill Creek has six communities in the Boston area including these two properties. According to Apartments.com, rents start at $1,995 per month for a studio apartment at Modera Framingham and $2,225 per month for a one-bedroom at Modera Marshfield.

October 30, 2020

Healthcare Life Sciences Market Reports Massachusetts Northeast Northeast Market Reports Office

Specialized Labor, Tenant Demand Fuel Growth of Boston’s Life Sciences Market

by Taylor Williams October 30, 2020

By Brendan Carroll, research director, Cushman & Wakefield Through the first three quarters of 2020, the Boston life sciences market is seeing record occupancy, a continuation of large new-building leases, stable rents at record levels, high levels of pre-committed new construction and an insatiable appetite for inventory in new submarket clusters. Cushman & Wakefield defines laboratory properties as facilities optimized for the physical scientific research of biotechnology products. COVID-19’s Impact Following a pause of leasing activity in the first quarter of 2020, lease negotiations for laboratory facilities resumed quickly in the second quarter, hitting a level that commercial office properties have still yet to see. While optimism quickly returned for the region’s office-using businesses, widespread execution of remote office-using job functions has proven to be more effective for many of these workforces than market leaders previously envisioned. The consensus among real estate observers suggests a long-term decrease in the percent of in-office workers for traditional office-using functions. However, the importance of the continued use of physical spaces for biotechnology research will not be affected, as this function cannot be accommodated through current and easily envisioned remote work practices. These are highly specialized jobs performed by employees with highly targeted skill …

October 30, 2020

Company News Massachusetts Northeast Restaurant Retail

Dunkin’ Shares Rise as Talks Progress for $8.8B Acquisition by Inspire Brands

by Taylor Williams October 27, 2020

CANTON, MASS. — Shares of Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. (NASDAQ: DNKN) rose by more than 15 percent yesterday as the Massachusetts-based coffee and breakfast chain moved forward with talks to be acquired by Atlanta-based Inspire Brands, the parent company of chains like Arby’s and Jimmy John’s. The New York Post reports that the deal, which would take Dunkin’ private is valued at $8.8 billion. Dunkin’s stock price closed at $89.80 per share on Friday, October 23 and peaked at $104.87 per share in yesterday’s trading before closing just below that mark. Dunkin’ opened at $101.69 per share today, up nearly 30 percent from a year ago. The New York Times reports that Inspire Brands has offered to purchase Dunkin’, which will release its latest earnings report on Thursday, at $106.50 per share.

October 27, 2020

Acquisitions Massachusetts Northeast Office

JLL Negotiates $72M Sale of 228,912 SF Office Building in Boston

by Taylor Williams October 27, 2020

BOSTON — JLL has negotiated the $72 million sale of a 228,912-square-foot creative office building located at 20 Guest St. in Boston. Designed by architecture firm ADD Inc. and completed in 2000, the property is located near the Boston Landing mixed-use development and was fully leased to seven tenants at the time of sale. Coleman Benedict, Kerry Hawkins and Ben Sayles of JLL represented the seller, NB Development Group, in the transaction. The buyer was a partnership between Griffith Properties LLC and Artemis Real Estate Partners.

October 27, 2020

Loans Massachusetts Multifamily Northeast

MassHousing Provides $67.4M in Acquisition Financing for Boston Apartments

by Taylor Williams October 22, 2020

BOSTON — MassHousing has provided $67.4 million in acquisition financing for Blue Mountain Apartments, a 217-unit historic affordable housing property located in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston. The borrower, NHP Foundation, will use a portion of the proceeds to rehabilitate the property and preserve its affordability through 2045. Blue Mountain Apartments consists of 105 one-bedroom apartments, 73 two-bedroom apartments, 18 three-bedroom apartments, 16 four-bedroom apartments and five five-bedroom apartments. Among the improvements planned for the property are concrete and masonry repairs, roof repairs, fire system upgrades, exterior door and window replacements, kitchen and bathroom upgrades and upgrades to the buildings’ HVAC, plumbing and electrical systems.

October 22, 2020

Development Massachusetts Northeast Top Stories

Beyond the Diamond: Boston Red Sox Owner to Redevelop Five Acres Surrounding Fenway Park

by John Nelson October 20, 2020

BOSTON — A division of Fenway Sports Group, the owner of the Boston Red Sox, is building a team to redevelop the area outside of Fenway Park. The company’s real estate arm, Fenway Sports Group Real Estate (FSGRE), is partnering with Massachusetts-based WS Development and the D’Angelo family to redevelop several sites surrounding the Red Sox home ballpark. Details were not disclosed, but The Boston Globe reports the project would bring office space, apartment buildings, shops, laboratories for life science firms, public spaces and maybe a hotel to the Fenway neighborhood. The office space could house Fenway Sports Group’s staffers who work inside Fenway Park’s offices, according to the newspaper. The move mirrors what other professional sports teams, including the Atlanta Braves and the St. Louis Cardinals, have done in recent years to create density surrounding their ballparks with mixed-use villages. The Boston Globe also reports that Fenway Sports Group has invested $350 million on physical improvements at Fenway Park over the past 18 years and in that time also purchased adjoining sites surrounding the ballpark for future development. “Our partnership’s work in the area surrounding the ballpark will have a profound effect on the experience of Red Sox fans …

October 20, 2020

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