This Week's Boston Deal Sheet
The Massachusetts Port Authority Board of Directors voted on a development team to bring the first fully income-restricted apartment development to the Seaport.
On Thursday, it selected The Community Builders to build a 15-story tower on D Street totaling 224K SF with 15K SF of ground-floor retail and a childcare facility, according to Massport's press release. The team behind the $170M project also includes The Menkiti Group, Sinclair Real Estate Group and Ionic Development Co.
“Building more housing is critical to the Commonwealth’s economy so we are excited about this important project that will bring affordable family and workforce housing to the South Boston Waterfront,” Massport CEO Lisa Wieland said in the release. “The Community Builder’s proposal led in all four selection criteria and we were impressed by their vast experience in building mixed-income communities.”
The 200-unit project is the first in the Seaport neighborhood with all of its units being income-restricted, the Boston Globe reported. It is planned to include a mix of two- and three-bedroom units varying in income levels from 30% to 120% of the area median income.
In 2021, the state agency put out the request for qualification for its 27K SF Parcel D-4, saying the affordable project would be the "first of its kind" in the neighborhood. The winning proposal satisfied the agency's four weighted selection criteria: ability to execute, levels of affordability, design and programming, and diversity, equity and inclusion.
Massport has partnered with private developers to bring on nearly 7M SF of development, including 3M SF of offices, 2,200 hotel rooms and 1,800 apartment units.
SALES
Two locations of the family-owned Lambert's Rainbow Market in Dorchester and Westwood sold for $23M. An entity named Dorchester Realty Ventures LLC bought the Dorchester location at 731-777 Morrissey Blvd. for $10M, and an entity named Westwood Realty Ventures LLC bought the Westwood location at 216-310 Providence Highway and surrounding plaza for $12.8M, according to property records.
Both LLCs are listed under the address 700 Providence Highway in Norwood, the home of Cadillac of Norwood, the Boston Business Journal reported. The family still hoped to operate the two locations under a 10-year lease when the properties went up for sale, the Dorchester Reporter reported in January.
LEASES
The Boston Planning & Development Agency selected the Toussaint Louverture Cultural Center to operate out of 131 Beverly St. on Lovejoy Wharf. The cultural center responded to the agency's request for letters of interest that was released last winter for proposals to use the space for Haitian-based programs, partners and communities, according to a press release.
The space is part of the 131 Beverly St. development, a 430K SF, 175-unit project with 9K SF of ground-floor retail. Aligning with the city's 1991 Municipal Harbor Plan, 2K SF of the project has been preserved for civic and cultural use, according to the request for letters of interest.
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Ascend Elements signed a lease for 101K SF at 39 Jackson Road in King Street Properties' Pathway Devens campus, where it plans to relocate and expand its headquarters from Westborough. The company plans to occupy the space in September 2024, bringing the total leasing to more than 550K SF in the three years since the project launched.
The expansion came after Ascend experienced "over 500% headcount growth" in the last 18 months with 350 members globally, including 140 employees in Massachusetts. Colliers' John Carroll III, Kevin Brawley, Evan Gallagher, Curtis Cole, Tim Allen and Caitlin Mahoney represented Ascend Elements, and CBRE's Brian McKenzie and Alex Plaistead represented King Street in the deal.
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D.C.-based Arnold & Porter opened an office on the 53rd floor of 200 Clarendon St. in the Back Bay in an effort to expand and strengthen its life sciences and healthcare practices in Boston. The firm hired three new attorneys as part of the expansion: Hemmie Chang, who will head the Boston office, and Josh Barlow and Fred Kelly, who will join as partners. It didn't disclose the square footage of the office.
CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, B’nai B’rith Housing, the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, MassHousing and residents celebrated the opening of Parkway 1208, a 60-unit, income-restricted apartment building in West Roxbury. The project is the first affordable housing development constructed in the neighborhood since 2013.
Of the 68 units, 45 are available for households earning less than 60% of the area median income, and an additional 15 units are designated for households earning less than 90% of AMI. The project was financed by several organizations, including the Mayor’s Office of Housing, the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, MassHousing, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, MassHousing, Eastern Bank and Boston Financial.
PERSONNEL
Newmark hired five retail brokers to its urban retail group. Matt Curtin, Greg Covey, Nicole Nielsen, Alden Bush and Ela Hazar join the firm from CBRE, with Curtin and Covey acting as managing director and senior managing director, respectively. The team has closed more than 100 retail transactions in the Boston area, according to a press release.
Curtin, who led the CBRE retail group since 2015, began his career as a broker in 2002 at The Dartmouth Co. and also worked as senior real estate manager at Apple from 2013 to 2014. Covey held roles at various companies, including RKF, JLL and WS Development. Neilsen, Bush and Hazar join Newmark as directors, and all come from CBRE.
