BURLINGTON, MASS. — Pramand, a medical technology company, has signed a 41,400-square-foot life sciences lease in Burlington, located northwest of Boston. The space is located within the six-building, 1.2 million-square-foot Blue Sky Center campus that is undergoing a $10 million capital improvement program. Matthew Malatesta, Tyler McGrail, Michael Frisoli, Eric Jeremiah and Connall Chamberlain of Newmark represented the landlord, a joint venture between Nordblom Co. and a global real estate private equity firm, in the lease negotiations. CBRE’s Jon Varholak and Perry Beal represented the tenant.
By Taylor Williams Everybody always remembers the one who got away, but what if they’d never shown up to the party in the first place? Or in the case of the Texas commercial development boom, is it possible that one specific asset class simply never took root, or is it more likely that it just hasn’t happened yet? The mystery party guest/asset class could only be life sciences — a sector that is somehow a quasi-subcategory of healthcare real estate, a longshot end use for an industrial conversion, a property type that represents the evolution of commercial-grade lab space and an investment vehicle that has captured billions of capital in coastal markets — all rolled into two basic words. And while the big-money question surrounding life sciences growth in Texas is not “what?” but “when?,” examining what the field actually already encompasses in the state is important to understanding the potential for a future boom. After all, it’s not as life sciences is nonexistent in Texas. According to a 2025 report from JLL titled, “Why Texas Life Sciences?” there are already some 8,700 life sciences companies employing more than 150,000 people in the state. More than $1.5 billion in combined …
CHELMSFORD, MASS. — Newmark has brokered the $11.5 million sale of 1 Executive Drive, a 112,440-square-foot life sciences building located northwest of Boston in Chelmsford. The building was 87 percent leased at the time of sale, with AMETEK affiliate Spectro Scientific and semiconductor manufacturer Qorvo serving as the anchor tenants. Edward Maher, Matthew Pullen, James Tribble, Samantha Hallowell and William Sleeper of Newmark represented the seller, Boston-based Foxfield, in the transaction and procured the buyer, Rhino Capital Advisors. David Douvadjian Sr., Timothy O’Donnell, David Douvadjian Jr., Bobby Alvarado and Conor Reenstierna, also with Newmark, arranged acquisition financing on behalf of the buyer.
— By Sebastian Bernt of Avison Young — The San Diego office market is beginning to stabilize in 2025. However, recovery remains uneven amid elevated vacancy, rising sublease availability and evolving workplace strategies. While quarterly leasing activity has improved modestly— up roughly 7 percent year over year through the second quarter — overall fundamentals remain challenged. San Diego’s total office availability rate stands at 18.2 percent as of the second quarter. This is flat from the previous quarter but still up more than 500 basis points from pre-pandemic norms. Sublease availability exceeds 2.2 million square feet, a lingering effect of corporate downsizing and the continued shift toward hybrid work models. Sublease inventory is most concentrated in suburban nodes such as UTC and Sorrento Mesa, as well as Downtown San Diego. Demand remains strongest for Class A assets in suburban submarkets like UTC, Del Mar Heights and Sorrento Valley where tenants prioritize modern, amenity-rich properties. Even within these markets, average deal sizes have declined by 20 percent to 30 percent compared to 2019 levels, with users often consolidating space and seeking shorter lease terms. Downtown San Diego continues to face pronounced headwinds, with vacancy topping 25 percent in several Class B …
BILLERICA, MASS. — Newmark has arranged the recapitalization of Axis Park North, a 450,000-square-foot industrial and life sciences campus located north of Boston in Billerica. The owner, a partnership between Camber Development and Wheelock Street Capital, sold a stake in the property to GEM Realty Capital for $79 million. The percentage was not disclosed. The six-building campus can support manufacturing and research-and-development uses and is currently home to tenants such as ASMPT AEi, Generac Power Systems and SuperConducting Systems. Robert Griffin, Edward Maher, Matthew Pullen, James Tribble, Samantha Hallowell, William Sleeper, Tony Coskren and Brian Pinch of Newmark represented both sides in the transaction.
WATERTOWN, MASS. — JLL has arranged the $119.2 million refinancing of 500 Forge, a 158,683-square-foot life sciences property in Watertown, located just west of Boston. The financing consists of a $94 million senior loan from Landesbank Baden-Württemberg and a $25.2 million mezzanine loan from Tishman Speyer. The property, which is located within the Arsenal Yards mixed-use development, was fully redeveloped in 2023 to feature 60 percent lab/research-and-development space and 40 percent office space. The property was fully leased at the time of the loan closings to three tenants: Mariana Oncology, Orna Therapeutics and AvenCell Therapeutics. Brett Paulsrud, Henry Schaffer and Geoff Goldstein of JLL arranged the financing on behalf of the borrower, a partnership between Boylston Properties and institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management.
ST. LOUIS — McCarthy Building Cos. Inc. has completed the Midwestern Laboratory, an 84,000-square-foot project for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service in St. Louis. Hoefer Welker designed the single-story facility. Located near the University of Missouri – St. Louis campus, the project includes microbiology and chemistry labs, a processing center, large receiving area and adjacent sample prep laboratory, as well as administrative offices. The facility will coordinate and conduct laboratory services in support of the agency’s farm-to-table strategies for food safety in meat, poultry, fish and egg products. The lab will house approximately 60 employees across three branches — administration, chemistry and microbiology. In alignment with the General Services Administration’s (GSA) mission to procure space for federal agencies, GSA executed a 20-year lease with US Federal Properties for a total contract value of $115.5 million. Construction began in May 2023.
BOSTON — A joint venture led by locally based REIT Diversified Healthcare Trust (NASDAQ: DHC) has received $1 billion for the refinancing of the Vertex Pharmaceuticals headquarters facility in Boston. A consortium of lenders — Morgan Stanley Bank, Bank of Montreal, Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan — provided the financing, which was structured with a five-year term and a fixed interest rate. Local investment firm RMR Group, which provides asset and property management services for the joint venture, arranged the debt. The majority of the proceeds will be used to retire $620 million in fixed-rate debt on the property, as well as to fund leasing reserves and repatriate cash to investors. Located at 50 Northern Ave. and 11 Fan Pier Blvd. in Boston’s Seaport District, the two-building facility spans approximately 1.1 million square feet. Both buildings were constructed in 2013. Vertex, which produces medicines and therapies for genetic disorders including cystic fibrosis, renewed its lease in August 2024 and will remain the property’s sole occupant through 2044. The joint venture ownership group includes multiple institutional investment groups that were not named in the announcement. Diversified Healthcare’s stake in the property is 10 percent; the company previously sold a 10 percent …
CAMBRIDGE, MASS. — Terrain Biosciences will open a new, 14,000-square-foot headquarters facility in Cambridge, located across the Charles River from Boston. The RNA therapeutics company will relocate from the nearby building at 400 Technology Way to Genesis 640 Memorial Drive, a 248,000-square-foot office and lab facility. CBRE represented the landlord, Phase 3 Real Estate Partners, in the lease negotiations. Colliers represented Terrain Bio. A timeline for occupancy was not announced.
BEDFORD, MASS. — Lantheus has signed a 41,000-square-foot office and life sciences lease in Bedford, a northwestern suburb of Boston.The provider of diagnostic and therapeutic products and services is taking space at The Core @ Crosby, a nine-building, 592,000-square-foot campus. Cushman & Wakefield represented Lantheus in the lease negotiations. The landlord is a partnership between Boston-based investment firm Anchor Line Partners and Alloy Properties, the national life sciences platform of TPG Real Estate.