WORCESTER, MASS. — Roseland Residential Trust, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mack-Cali Realty Corp., has broken ground for 145 Front Street at City Square in downtown Worcester. As part of a multi-phased mixed-use development, the first phase will feature 237 apartments in a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom layouts; an outdoor swimming pool with sundeck; a courtyard with fire pit; barbecue grills; a fitness center; a full-time concierge and a clubroom with billiards, computers, lounge area and game room. Additionally, the building will feature 10,000 square feet of retail space. At full build out, the mixed-use development will feature 365 apartments, a hotel, public parking garage and significant retail space. The first-phase community is slated for completion in third quarter 2017.
Massachusetts
BOSTON — Chesapeake Lodging Trust has received a $150 million fixed-rate mortgage for the 502-room Hyatt Regency Boston, located at 1 Avenue de Lafayette in downtown Boston. Provided by MetLife, the 10-year loan features a 30-year amortization schedule. Chesapeake plans to use proceeds of the loan to repay outstanding borrowings under the trust’s revolving credit facility.
BOSTON — National Real Estate Advisors and The HYM Investment Group have unveiled plans to redevelop the Government Center Garage into Bulfinch Crossing, a six-building, 2.9 million-square-foot mixed-use development in Boston’s Bulfinch Triangle. Spanning two city blocks, Bulfinch Crossing will be anchored by One Congress, a 1 million-square-foot office tower designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects. At full build-out, the development will feature three mid-rise buildings, including a hotel-and-condo building, an office building and a multi-story retail property, surrounding a new public plaza on the eastern side of the parcel, and One Congress and two high-rise residential buildings on the west parcel. Expected to break ground later this year, the project’s first high-rise residential component, designed by CBT Architects, will consist of 486 units, including 64 designated as affordable housing. In total, the mixed-use development will include 812 residential units, 196 hotel rooms, 1.15 million square feet of office space and 85,000 square feet of new retail space. Additionally, the property will feature a 1-acre rooftop amenity on the west parcel and a more than 1-acre public plaza on the east parcel. At completion of the overall redevelopment, the remaining portions of the existing garage will contain approximately 1,100 parking spaces …
DEVENS, MASS. — CBRE/New England has arranged the sale of an industrial facility located at 36 Saratoga Blvd. in Devens. Cabot Properties acquired the 162,000-square-foot facility from J.G. Petrucci Co. for $10.35 million. Developed in 1999, the property was fully occupied at the time of acquisition. Bob Gibson, Dave Pergola and Brian Doherty of CBRE/NE represented the seller and procured the buyer.
BOSTON — FirstService Corp. has expanded its residential property management operations to Boston with the acquisition of The Niles Company, a property management firm that was founded in 1907. The transaction will add more than 80 properties to FirstService Residential’s existing property management portfolio, which totals approximately 7,500 properties comprising more than 1.6 million residential units throughout North America. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Cornerstone Realty Capital Arranges $56M in Acquisition Financing for Value-Add Multifamily Portfolio
by Amy Works
WESTWOOD AND SOMERVILLE, MASS. — Cornerstone Realty Capital has arranged $56 million for the acquisition of four multifamily properties totaling 244 units, including 156 units in Westwood and 88 units across three properties in Somerville. The borrower was TrueNorth Capital Partners. The first of the two acquisitions is Westwood Glen, located at 21 Westwood Glen Road in Westwood. Situated on 13.5 acres, the seven-building, 156-unit, age-restricted property was purchased for $34.4 million. The Somerville Squares Portfolio properties were purchased for a total of $27.3 million from a private family. TrueNorth acquired the 63-unit 379-389 Broadway Street for $20 million, the 18-unit 39-49 Bow Street for $4.7 million, and the seven-unit 8-12 Beacon Terrace for $2.6 million. The buyer plans to invest $6 million in improvements to the Westwood property and $4 million on the Somerville properties. Simon Butler and Biria St. John of CBRE/New England represented the undisclosed seller and procured the buyer in both deals.
BOSTON — Colliers International has brokered the sale of a medical office building located at 147 Milk St. in Boston. Multi-Employer Trust, advised by Bentall Kennedy, purchased the property form an affiliate of Lexington Realty Trust for $33.2 million. The 52,337-square-foot building is fully leased to Atrius Health, parent of Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates. Doug Jacoby, Scott Dragos, Tony Hayes, Tim Mulhall and Dan Hines of Colliers represented the seller and secured the buyer.
LOWELL, MASS. — WinnDevelopment has secured financing to transform the 170-year-old Adden Building, a historic mill in Lowell, into market-rate apartments. The $15.5 million adaptive reuse project will complete a three-building residential development effort for the 15-acre Hamilton Canal District. Construction of the 88,000-square-foot building is expected to start immediately, with completion slated for summer 2017. Designed by The Architectural Team, the project will feature 73 market-rate apartments and two units restricted to households with incomes at or below 60 percent of area median income. The unit mix will be 47 one-bedroom units, 11 one-bedroom units with dens and 17 two-bedroom apartments. The project is a joint venture between WinnDevelopment, Banc of America CDC and the Architectural Heritage Foundation. Dellbrook Construction is serving as general contractor for the project, which is situated between the 52-unit Counting House Lofts and the 173-unit Loft Two Seven.
Phillips Edison Grocery Center REIT II Acquires Retail Properties in Massachusetts, Connecticut
by Amy Works
RAYNHAM, MASS., AND MONTVILLE, CONN. — Phillips Edison Grocery Center REIT II has acquired two grocery-anchored shopping centers in Massachusetts and Connecticut. The REIT purchased Shaw’s Plaza, a 175,842-square-foot retail center in Raynham, a suburb 30 miles south of Boston. The property is occupied by national and regional tenants, including Jo-Ann Fabrics, Marshalls, CVS/pharmacy, Sovereign Bank, Dress Barn, Gamestop, Panera Bread, Bank of America, PetSmart, SuperCuts, GNC, Spring and Cardi’s Furniture. The acquisition adds the first Shaw’s grocery-anchored shopping center to the company’s portfolio. Additionally, the REIT acquired Montville Commons, a 117,916-square-foot shopping center in Montville. The property is occupied by Stop & Shop, Anytime Fitness, Subway, Sweet Frog, Sleep’s, Hair Cuttery, Gamestop, GNC, Chili’s Bar & Grill and AT&T. Terms of the sales, including the sellers’ names and acquisition prices, were not released.
MEDFORD, MASS. — CBRE/New England’s Capital Markets team has arranged the sale of Lumiere, an infill apartment community located in Medford. An affiliate of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America acquired the multifamily property from MV Parkways Partners, a joint venture between Criterion Property Co. and an affiliate of AIG Global Real Estate, for an undisclosed price. Opened in September 2014, the property features 33 studios, 76 one-bedroom apartments, 53 two-bedroom apartments, and a 4,600-square-foot Lookout Lounge, including a game room, kitchen and 24-hour fitness center. Simon Butler and Biria St. John of CBRE/NE represented the seller and procured the buyer in the sale.