The Deal Sheet
Recent hockey experience aside, Boston and Cambridge will benefit from the presence of another Canadian team: Oxford Properties Group agreed to pay Blackstone Group $2.1B for 3.2M SF of downtown offices with partners, says RCA director of market research Ben Thypin.
As an affiliate of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, Oxford will hold the assets for the long term, assuring stability in the CBD. (If there are two things retirees hate, it's change and kids on their lawn.) It will benefit from the economies of scale that such a large portfolio offers, Ben tells us. Oxford now owns 100 High St and 125 Summer St. In partnership with the asset management arm of JP Morgan Chase, it also owns 60 State St, 225 Franklin St, and One Memorial Dr in Cambridge (above).
Oxford may also see this deal as a “bit of a bargain” compared to other gateway cities, Ben tells us. In Q1, average cap rates for downtown Boston offices were 5.6%, compared to 5.5% for DC, 5.2% for San Francisco, and 4.5% for New York. What does Oxford see in Boston going forward? Most likely, it’s looking for stability and capital preservation with some growth in values, Ben says. For Blackstone, this is likely to be its largest US office sale since the downturn in 2008.
SALES
MRH Hamilton purchased 90 Hamilton St, a 7,800 SF office building in Cambridgeport for $2.6M from Urban-SRP 90 Hamilton, a JV between Urban Spaces and StoneRiver Properties. Boston Realty Advisors’ Chris Sower, Jason Weissman, Michael d’Hemecourt, Robert LeClair, and Jeremy Freid repped the seller.
CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
C-Town Ventures and Neshamkin French Architects will do a $22M renovation and adaptive reuse of the 1907 Charlestown Battalion Armory into 42 condos with parking for 84 vehicles. Construction, slated to start this summer, will be completed by next summer. Public benefits include six affordable housing units, a new passive open space, exhibits about the building’s military history, and a contribution of $50,000 towards the upkeep of Charlestown Firefighters Memorial Park on Bunker Hill Street.
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The Trellis Group will build a $3.5M, 18-unit residential building with 1,800 SF of commercial space on vacant lots at 1467 Tremont St in Mission Hill. 16 units will be market rate and two affordable. The architect is Choo & Co.
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An affiliate of The Hamilton Co won a green light from the city to develop 48 housing units—including seven affordable—with parking for 44 cars at 40 Malvern St in Allston near Packard’s Corner. Developmental Resources is the architect for the $11.5M project. Construction is expected to begin in late 2014 or early 2015.
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The Arcand Family/Allston, with Neshamkin French Architects, will build a $7M, 40 residential units (including five affordable), 1,631 SF of commercial space, and parking for 57 cars and 40 bikes at 440-450 Cambridge Street near Union Square in Allston. Construction is slated to start in November and be completed in ’16.
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R&B Investments plans to develop 33 condos, four of which will be affordable; 2,091 SF of ground-floor commercial/retail space; parking for 33 cars; and bicycle parking at 488 Dorchester Ave near Andrew Square in Southie. R&B expects to begin construction in Q3.
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In August, Lucky Strike will start to build a $6.3M mixed-use project—22 residences (three affordable), four ground-floor commercial spaces, and parking for 14 vehicles at 281-289 Adams St in Dorchester near the Fields Corner T-strop on the Red Line. The replacement for the Lucky Strike Bowling Alley is being designed by Davis Square Architects and is slated for completion in a year.
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Boston College will renovate a 23k SF Commonwealth Avenue building in Brighton to create a conference/meeting space. The 31k SF project includes relo of the McMullen Museum and a 7,100 SF addition.
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Affordable Housing and Services Collaborative will renovate the distressed 64-unit Middlebury Arms apartments in Middleborough and kept the apartments affordable. With the help of $9.2M in financing from MassHousing and $1M from the state’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund, it will replace roofs and HVAC, plumbing, and life-safety systems exterior siding and windows as well as other exterior and interior improvements. The team includes NEI General Contracting, The Architectural Team, and management agent Peabody Properties.
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Dennison Lubricants, a manufacturer and distributor of premium lubricants, is using the proceeds from a $4.2M tax-exempt bond issued by MassDevelopment to expand and equip its Worcester facility at 692-694 Millbury St. It will build a 20k SF addition as well as upgrade the existing rail spur and improve the manufacturing laboratory. RBS Citizens purchased the bonds. Dennison operates two other facilities in Lakeville and Gardiner, Maine.
FINANCING
Universal Properties acquired Weymouth Place, a 211-unit apartment community in Newton, with the help of a $21M loan from Prudential Mortgage Capital Co. Prudential’s Brian Salyards says his team likes the property for its convenient location, as well as the sustainable lighting and fitness center that attract tenants.
LEASING
DCS Corp leased nearly 27k SF of office R&D space at 295 Foster St in Littleton from Ferris Development Group for a relo and consolidation. Parsons Commercial’s Marci Alvarado and Alex Berger repped the landlord.
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Mobile Heartbeat took 6,375 SF at 2 University Office Park in Waltham from Direct Invest. Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s Drew Nelson repped the landlord and Avison Young’s Kevin Malloy repped the tenant.
