This Week's Boston Deal Sheet
Arnold Worldwide and Havas Media plan to move from downtown Boston to the former General Electic headquarters building in Fort Point.
The two companies, owned by French advertising and public relations company Havas, signed a 70K SF lease at 5 Necco St., the Boston Globe reported.
The new lease represents a downsizing from its 125K SF in the Burnham Building at 10 Summer St. The company has roughly 400 employees in the city.
"With our current lease coming to an end, we saw an opportunity to identify a new home for our Boston Village (which includes Arnold and other Havas entities based here)," an Arnold spokesperson told the Globe. "Having evolved our attendance model over the past few years, the new footprint is a reflection of a modern, vibrant and hybrid workforce."
GE moved out of its 100K SF office at 5 Necco St. last year after announcing plans to split into three separate entities: GE HealthCare, GE Vernova and GE Aerospace. GE moved into a smaller office at One Financial Center near South Station. GE also sold 15 Necco St., which had once been envisioned as a 390K SF, 12-story building that would house roughly 800 workers.
SALES
Life sciences giant Alexandria Real Estate Equities acquired an industrial property from F.W. Webb at 307 Dorchester Ave. for $43M. The property had served as a showroom for the engineering and construction product distributor, which opened a new showroom at 101 Hampden St. The life sciences developer hasn't revealed its plan for the site.
LEASES
Quality Custom Distribution signed a 135K SF lease at the Taunton Trade Center at 300 Charles F. Colton Road in Taunton. The center consists of 585K SF of industrial and distribution space and is 68% leased. Cushman & Wakefield’s Philip Verre and Pete Whoriskey represented the landlord, Martignetti Cos., while C&W's Chon Kantikovit represented the tenant.
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Semiconductor manufacturing company Axcelis Technologies signed a 96K SF lease at 105 Sam Fonzo Drive in Beverly. The location will serve as the company's new distribution and fulfillment center. The property was developed by Tom Ford, owner of T Ford LLC. Newmark's Richard Ruggiero, Matt Adams, Torin Taylor and Rory Walsh represented Axcelis.
FINANCING
Camber Development and Wheelock Street Capital secured a $57M construction loan for a 238K SF industrial project at 800 Salem St. in Wilmington. Construction is underway and is expected to be completed in the third quarter. The property is planned to include 47 docks and parking for 332 vehicles and 33 trailers.
The developers bought the site in 2022 for $35.2M. A JLL Capital Markets team led by Steven Klein, Brett Paulsrud and Ryan Parker represented the borrowers in the deal.
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MassHousing provided a $16.4M loan to Alinea Capital Partners for an affordable housing development in New Bedford. The developer will use the loan to finance a 52-unit multifamily project branded as 10@8th. The development will include a five-story building that will take the place of the former Registry of Motor Vehicles building and parking lot. The developer announced it will break ground soon and will mark the largest construction project in the city's downtown in 38 years.
PERSONNEL
CBRE hired Michael Joyce as vice chair, its highest rank for a transaction professional. Joyce worked for the past six years at Cushman & Wakefield, where he also held the role of vice chair. He began his career with CBRE in the 1990s before he co-founded brokerage firm Richards Barry Joyce in 2001 and sold the firm in 2013 to Transwestern. He spent five years with that firm before leaving for C&W.
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Capstone Communities LLC hired William Kennerly as director of operations. In this new role, he will be responsible for the management and oversight of the operations of the company's portfolio. Before joining Capstone, Kennerly worked on-site at a development in Houston and spent 10 years in real estate brokerage sales.
CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT
The Boston Planning & Development Agency is restarting efforts to redevelop 105 First Ave., a former chain-making factory in Charlestown's Navy Yard. The agency had first found interest in developing the site in 2009 by hiring Kavanagh Advisory Group, which proposed a 230-room hotel, but those plans fell through, the Boston Business Journal reported. The agency now plans to start a new redevelopment process for the property with community outreach.
