LEOMINSTER, MASS. — Calare Properties has completed the disposition of an industrial property located at 25 Tucker Drive in Leominster. An undisclosed buyer acquired the 588,000-square-foot building for $31.5 million. Situated on 24 acres, the manufacturing, distribution and office property is fully occupied by Affordable Interior Systems. Calare Properties, in partnership with Fir Tree Partners, originally acquired the property in 2012.
BOSTON — ClearRock Properties and Juster Properties have partnered to acquire an office building located at 201-207 South St. in downtown Boston’s Leather District. Meritage Properties sold the six-story property for $27.5 million. Built in 1909, the 73,689-square-foot property was recently revitalized with a full façade restoration; renovation of the entry, lobby, elevator cabs and common areas; and the conversion of a 4,000-square-foot storage area into quality office space. Current tenants include Credo Mobile, Publishers Clearing House, BlueConic and Evidox. Under the new ownership, JLL will continue as leasing agent and Lincoln Property Co. will continue as property manager. Jessica Hughes of JLL represented the seller in the transaction.
BOSTON — Leggat McCall Properties, along with its joint venture partner Multi-Employer Property Trust (MEPT), and development advisor Bozzuto Development Co. have filed an expanded Project Notification Form with the Boston Redevelopment Authority for 3.1 acres of land in Boston’s South End. The site was acquired from the Boston Medical Center in late 2014. Spanning the block between Harrison Avenue and Albany Street and East Dedham and East Canton streets, the Harrison Albany project will bring a mix of residential, retail, office and cultural space to the South End. The proposed two-building project will feature 710 apartments, 14,000 square feet of retail space, 40,000 square feet of office space and public open space, including a green promenade between the two residential buildings. Additionally, the existing parking lots will be removed and replaced with underground parking.
BOSTON AND PHILADELPHIA — Modell’s Sporting Goods has opened locations in Boston and Philadelphia. Located at 480 Boylston St. in Boston’s Back Bay area and at 1608 Walnut St. in Philadelphia near Rittenhouse Square, the two 11,000-square-foot stores will be tailored to customers passionate about running, fitness and professional sports teams and will offer elite brands such as Brooks, Asics, The North Face, Nike, Under Armour and adidas.
NEWTON, MASS. — A joint venture between Angelo Gordon & Co. and Jumbo Capital Management has acquired two office buildings, located at 7-57 and 75-85-95 Wells Ave. in Newton, a suburb eight miles west of Boston, for $62.3 million. The properties total 332,194 square feet. Coleman Benedict and Ben Sayles of HFF represented the undisclosed seller and buyer in the sale. Additionally, HFF worked on behalf of the new owner to secure a five-year, fixed-rate first mortgage financing for $47.1 million, which included funds for the acquisition and a facility for future tenanting and capital costs. Lauren O’Neil and Brett Paulsrud of HFF arranged the financing for the borrower, while Mike Terry and Jonpaul Sallese, also of HFF, represented East Boston Savings Bank in the mortgage transaction.
BOSTON — CIM Group has acquired an office building located at 95 Berkeley St. in Boston’s South End for an undisclosed sum. CIM made the acquisition with Boston-based Center Court Mass. Constructed in 1920, the six-story building features 114,000 square feet of office space and a below-grade parking structure. The property was last renovated in 1988.
The last five years have seen a lot of shuffling around for Boston’s mainstay industries, with professional service firms moving to the Seaport and tech companies moving to Kendall Square. Although we’ve seen more new residential and commercial development than ever, there will always be space limitations in Boston, which means there will always be more user demand than there is space on the market. The space left behind from tenants on the move will be easily filled by the next wave of tenants — and the cycle continues. Oxford Properties’ latest announcement of its acquisition of 222 Berkeley St. and 500 Boylston St. in the Back Bay is perhaps the best example of the trajectory model in Boston. And similar to the media and finance switcheroo that Manhattan is experiencing (the media mecca is now downtown and FiDi is now midtown), media companies in Boston are now moving into the financial district and finance firms are moving to the Seaport. Boston Globe Media Partners is close to leasing 75,000 square feet of space at 53 State Street. The publishing company will take some of Goodwin Procter’s block that will be vacated once the company relocates to the Seaport District. …
SOMERVILLE AND TAUNTON, MASS. — Fantini & Gorga has arranged two loans totaling $7.3 million in permanent financing on two retail properties in Massachusetts. In the first transaction, Fantini & Gorga arranged $2 million in refinancing for a 17,500-square-foot strip center in Somerville. The borrower was a long-term client of Fantini & Gorga. The 20-year fixed-rate loan, which was provided by a regional financial institution, features a 25-year amortization schedule. In the second deal, Fantini & Gorga secured $5.3 million in refinancing on an existing CMBS loan for a 30,000-square-foot strip center in Taunton. The new 10-year loan was originated with another CMBS lender. Mark Whelan and Wayne Clough of Fantini & Gorga arranged the financing for both transactions.
MANSFIELD, MASS. — SVN|Parsons Commercial Group|Boston has brokered the sale of a multifamily property located at 12 Pratt St. in Mansfield. Heartwood Realty LLC acquired the property for $3.2 million from Feck Properties LLC. The 24-unit property was 100 percent occupied at the time of sale. Marci Alvarado and Jake Parsons of SVN|Parsons Commercial Group represented the seller and buyer in the transaction.
BOSTON — IBA – Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción has secured $1.3 million in financing from the Department of Housing and Community Development to renovate Residencia Betances, a housing development in Boston’s South End. Located on Shawmut Avenue, the property, which serves low-income individuals with serious mental health issues, features 11 single-room occupancy units. Planned renovations include enhancements to the property’s historical brownstone exterior and revamping the interior to create a more open and welcoming floor plan, along with improvements to the individual units. Originally developed in 1993 by IBA, the property is one of the few properties that provides supportive housing to Spanish-speaking residents who are formerly homeless clients of the Development of Mental Health.
