News
Baby Steps to Big Splash
February 23, 2012
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| Cresset prez Ed Nardi is also a hit at the Seaport, developing Liberty Wharf. The new 75K SF waterfront restaurant and boutique office has drawn massive crowds since opening last spring. Its offices are 100% leased and restaurant valets are parking thousands of cars, helping the Seaport District becomethe hot new place. But Ed tells us that the project came together in ?baby steps?. When Jimmy?s Harborside occupied the site, it had a plumbing problem and called Ed (also a contractor) to take a look. When the Jimmy?s building was again ailing in '02, the restaurateur called in Ed again; they hit it off and little things led to big things. | |
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| Cresset EVP Bill Curtis says in targeting development opportunities, it's cautious and patient. He tells us Cresset knows where it sits in the pecking order: between the big guys and the guy with the pickup truck. It focuses on Boston, South Boston, Cambridge and the inner suburbs, and as markets shift, tackles all asset types. It's vertically integrated, doing permitting, design, development, construction, and management. | |
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| EVP John Baxter focuses on the legal and financial structure of the deal at hand—and 12-year-old Cresset?s independence has given it flexibility to adjust to changing market conditions and preferences. Cresset?s first project in ?01 was converting into condos a fully leased 70-unit apartment building at 860 Mass Ave in Cambridge. It went to market in ?03 and sold all of the units within six months for an average $410/SF. | |
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| Steve Sinni, Michael Wilmerding, and Stephen Peabody are part of the Cresset team developing a 200-unit multifamily project at 411 D St, which sits astride the established South Boston market and the burgeoning Seaport neighborhood (it's near the Seaport convention center). It's now going through permitting and may start construction mid-'12. Cresset is now focusing on new construction, but since spec office development is still risky, it's all about multifamily. | |
