This Week's Boston Deal Sheet
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu's office-to-residential conversion program has been extended until the end of 2025 due to new state funding.
The program was originally scheduled to expire June 30 but will now run until December 2025 thanks to $15M in state funding, the city announced on Monday. The money is coming from the state's Affordable Housing Trust Fund, the Boston Business Journal reported.
"This investment from the State will support our efforts to incentivize lenders, property owners, and downtown stakeholders to increase housing production in our downtown area,” Wu said in a statement. “I'm thankful to Governor Healey and all of our partners for their efforts in ensuring Boston's growth meets the needs of current and future residents.”
The new funding would provide up to $215K per affordable unit with a cap of $4M per project. The city says it expects to see an additional 300 to 500 units of housing created with the program extended. Applicants approved through the program would need to commit to pulling a full building permit and start construction by Dec. 31, 2026.
Since the program launched in October, there have been nine proposals received that would create 412 units of housing across 13 buildings. The program provides a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes incentive for developers that pursue these conversion projects. The average tax reduction would be up to 75% of the standard tax rate for up to 29 years.
SALES
The Seyon Group and Kipling Capital closed on its Seyon Industrial Fund, which it used to acquire two light industrial buildings in Canton and Randolph for $21.8M. The company acquired the 99K SF building at 50 North St. in Canton for $13.8M and the 54K SF property at 75 York Ave in Randolph for $8M, according to public records. To date, the fund has acquired two other assets in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
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A joint venture between Sendero Capital and TPG Angelo Gordon acquired a 67K SF medical office building at 65 Walnut St. in Wellesley for $24M from an affiliate of Haynes Management Inc. The building is anchored by Mass General Brigham and Tufts Medicine. Newmark's Robert Griffin, Michael Greeley, Joseph Alvarado and Casey Valente represented the seller and procured the buyer.
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City Realty acquired 201-207 South St. from an affiliate of MC Real Estate Partners for $13M, according to public records. Like other recent office deals, the Leather District property was bought at a discount from the $27.5M that MCRE paid for it in 2016, the Boston Business Journal first reported. The firm has been ramping up its office investment by purchasing 186 Lincoln St. in October and a $41M Brookline office park in May.
LEASES
The Davis Cos. completed its 162K SF development at 101 Smith Place in East Cambridge. The company and its partner, Invesco Real Estate, also secured a 13K SF lease from South Korean-based battery manufacturer Samsung SDI, which marks the property's first lease.
The manufacturer is expected to occupy the space in December 2024. CBRE's Eric Smith, McKenna Teague, Tess Chandler and Jack Scribner represented the landlord and Montivista Real Estate Investment's Ruyi Cai represented the tenant.
PERSONNEL
Three vice presidents were appointed at REITs managed by Newton-based The RMR Group. Jesse Abair was appointed vice president of Service Properties Trust, Jared Lewis was appointed vice president of Seven Hills Realty Trust and Marc Krohn was appointed vice president of Industrial Logisitics Properties Trust.
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Chris Legocki has joined Marcus Partners as senior vice president of investments. Legocki will report to the firm's chief investment officer, Ryan McDonough, and will be responsible for sourcing investment options in the Boston region. Legocki was most recently with Greystar, where he acted as senior director of development. In that role, he helped to establish and grow the firm's regional development and acquisition business. He has held other positions at Longpoint Realty Partners, Skanska USA and First Niagra Bank.
CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
Dale Development is planning 375 units of housing on several parcels on Elm Street in Amesbury, Massachusetts. The developer plans to build on a 25-acre site known as the Golden Triangle between I-95 and I-495.
The developer has proposed up to 10% income-restricted units in the project. The site would be divided into north and south sections. The north section would include all of the rental units, and the south neighborhood would include single-family and condo units.
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Cabot, Cabot & Forbes broke ground on a 440-unit multifamily development in Wakefield. The Basin is located on 24 acres at 200 Quannapowitt Parkway. The property lies on the northern end of Lake Quannapowitt. CC&F and partner Equity Residential acquired the property in 2022 for $30M.
