CAMBRIDGE, MASS. — bluebird bio Inc. has signed a 10-year lease with Alexandria Real Estate Equities Inc. to occupy a 253,000-square-foot, build-to-suit property at 60 Binney St. at Alexandria Center at Kendall Square campus in Cambridge. The lease is for the entire 60 Binney Street building except for a ground-floor retail suite. The project is on track to be delivered in late 2016. bluebird bio, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, plans to relocate its headquarters to the new facility, which will also expand its presence in Cambridge. The Alexandria Center at Kendall Square is a fully integrated urban campus featuring 2.3 million rentable square feet of state-of-the-art office/laboratory space and high-quality amenities, including retail and restaurant facilities, a 33,000-square-foot Cambridge Athletic Club and two acres of open space.
NEW YORK CITY — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of a mixed-use property located at 741 Fulton St. in Brooklyn. BBD Enterprises sold the 2,600-square-foot property, which features multifamily and retail space, for $2.3 million. Dwane Omar Jones represented the seller and the buyer, a local private investment partnership, in the transaction.
NEW YORK CITY — Fundrise, a platform for crowdfunded online real estate investment, has partnered with 306 7th Street LLC to provide $2 million in funding for an apartment repositioning in Brooklyn’s Park Slope. The partnership has selected JLB Project Management to oversee the three-unit apartment repositioning. Fundrise investors are projected to receive a gross annual return of 11 percent paid current quarterly over an 18-month term. Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising many small amounts of money from a large number of people, typically via the Internet. JPB Project Management specializes in high-quality, boutique projects in and around New York City. The firm has completed several similar renovations in the area.
WOODBRIDGE, N.J. — T.J. Maxx has opened a new location at St. Georges Crossing in Woodbridge. Levin Management constructed the freestanding 23,000-square-foot store on an underutilized parcel of land adjacent to the original St. Georges Crossing site. Levin spearheaded the off-market land purchase, secured the T.J. Maxx lease and obtained site plan approval for the new building, which enabled the firm to bring the nationally recognized tenant to the 340,000-square-foot shopping center. Current tenants include ShopRite, P.C. Richard & Son, PetSmart, Pier 1 Imports, Golf Galaxy, Shannon Rose, AutoZone, Bertucci’s, Wine Country, Verizon Wireless, European Wax Center, Visionworks and Taco Bell, among others.
SHORT HILLS, N.J. — KMPG, a global accounting firm, has signed a long-term lease for 54,341 square feet of office space at 150 John F. Kennedy Parkway in Short Hills. The 247,476-square-foot property, which is owned by Mack-Cali Realty Corp., recently underwent renovations that included the lobby and an enhanced entryway. Amenities at the property feature lobby-level food service and complimentary Wi-Fi in the café and lobby. With the signing of KPMG, 150 John F. Kennedy Parkway is now 100 percent leased. Jeffrey Babikian, Patrick Murphy and Kenneth Boland of CBRE represented the tenant in the transaction.
OVERLAND PARK, KAN. — NorthMarq Capital has arranged a $24.4 million HUD refinancing for Whispering Hills Apartments located at 8800 W. 124th St. in Overland Park, a Kansas City suburb. Brent Blake of NorthMarq arranged the refinancing for the 376-unit property. The transaction was structured with a 35-year amortization term. Amenities of the apartment complex include equipped kitchens with granite counters, private patios with storage, washer and dryer connections, an on-site DVD library, numerous catered events, an indoor and outdoor swimming pool and a 24-hour fitness center.
ROCKFORD, ILL. — Quantum Real Estate Advisors Inc. has brokered the sale of a 9,000-square-foot retail building located at 7310 Walton St. in Rockford, approximately 90 miles west of Chicago. The property was sold for $2.7 million and was 78 percent leased at the time of sale. The tenants at the time of sale were Aspen Dental and Sleep Number. Chad Firsel and Daniel Waszak of Quantum were the sole brokers in the transaction. The seller was an undisclosed real estate investor based in Illinois, and the buyer was an undisclosed Texas-based fund. Quantum Real Estate Advisors Inc. specializes in investment sales brokerage and assisting clients in the acquisition and disposition of commercial real estate.
CHICAGO — Transwestern has arranged a 26,208-square-foot lease for Noil Petroleum Corp. The office/warehouse building located at 611 – 613 N. Union St. is 58,400 square feet. John Joyce of Transwestern represented the building owner, Gross Props. Noil Petroleum plans to build 15,000 square feet of offices and use the remaining 11,200 square feet for additional vehicle storage. AAA, a client of Noil Petroleum, occupies the building’s remaining 32,000 square feet. The lease brings the building to 100 percent occupancy. Noil Petroleum plans to relocate to the facility on Nov. 1.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dominion Realty Partners has closed on the $8.5 million purchase of a five-acre site on West Trade Street in Uptown Charlotte from Bank of America. The developer will soon begin construction at the site on 1010 West Trade, a 294-unit apartment community. The five-story apartment development will wrap around a parking deck and an interior amenity courtyard that will feature a saltwater pool, grilling stations with big-screen TVs, backyard sports lawn and gathering spaces. Other amenities will include a business center, cyber café, fitness center, clubroom and a demonstration kitchen. Chris Swart of Lincoln Harris represented the seller, and Beau McIntosh of Capstone Apartment Partners represented Dominion Realty Partners in the land purchase. Architectural firm Rule Joy Trammell & Rubio designed 1010 West Trade, and VCC is the general contractor overseeing construction of the project.
COVINGTON, LA. — Gulf States Real Estate and Construction Services has begun construction on two new office buildings in the Tammany West Multiplex Business Park located along I-12 and Highway 1077 in Covington, roughly 41 miles north of New Orleans. The larger project is the 22,000-square-foot PSX Corporate Office Building, an owner-occupied project that will house PSX Corporate’s offices, a warehouse and an assembly facility. PSX Corporate provides visual arts and special effects for casinos and other entertainment venues. The second building is a 10,450-square-foot project that Gulf States is developing for Durham Properties LLC. This building will be available for lease. Gulf States expects to complete both buildings in late spring 2016. These buildings are the fourth and fifth office projects developed by Gulf States this year.