Work on 'The District' Transformation to Begin Soon

BURLINGTON, MA—The massive repositioning of the New England Executive Park here into “The District” will begin in earnest this summer with the construction of a new Marriott Residence Inn hotel, building upgrades, a new parking garage, and six new restaurants.

A joint venture of National Development, AEW Capital Management, and Charles River Realty Investors acquired the 60-acre property in June 2013 for $216 million and since then has been working on a master plan to reposition the 13-building property into what company officials say will be a “walkable, urban style destination.” AEW owns the property on behalf of the AEW Core Property Trust (U.S.), an open-end core real estate fund. National Development is based in Newton Lower Fall, MA. Charles River Realty is National Development's private equity fund and investment management affiliate. National Development owns or manages approximately 8 million square feet of office space in the Route 496 region in Eastern Massachusetts.

The existing complex features approximately 1 million square feet of office space as well as two restaurants—Tavern in the Square and Tuscan Kitchen. The property's office component is currently about 90% occupied. The complex's largest tenants include Charles River Systems, which occupies approximately 100,000 square feet of space, and Black Duck Software, which leases about 45,000 square feet at the complex.

Andrew Gallinaro, senior vice president, director of asset management at National Development, says the repositioning will be undertaken in phases. While the total cost of the initiative has not been finalized, Gallinaro says it is a “significant multi-million dollar venture.”

“The District will allow tenants to enjoy a multifaceted, vibrant workspace encouraging collaboration and networking that extends beyond work hours,” Gallinaro says. “By introducing a variety of amenities including restaurants, retail, hotel and high-quality open space, we will meet the demands of today's workforce and will allow employers to attract and retain the highest-quality talent.”

The property developed between the 1960s to the mid1980s has been a highly successful suburban office park and continues to maintain high occupancies. Gallinaro says that the goal of the rebranding of the park to The District is “to position the property to be successful for the next 40 years.” Another key to the planned improvements is to attract urban-based companies and workers to the property.

The first phase will include the construction of renovation of Building 7, which will consist of a 54,000-square-foot addition to create 80,000 square feet of modern workspace, a green roof deck, and gleaming glass exterior, which will form the new terminus to the main street of the property. The 170-room Marriott Residence Inn will also feature a 7,550-square-foot restaurant on the ground floor. Other enhancements at The District include new walking trails, new restaurants, including Island Creek Oyster Bar, along with utility, paving, lighting, signage and landscape improvements throughout the property and along the frontage of Burlington Mall Road. Upgrades to existing buildings will include new lobbies, entries and plazas.

“We are enthusiastic about The District,” says Dan Bradley, director and senior portfolio manager at AEW Capital Management. “We felt it was a great opportunity to acquire a property in one of the preeminent suburban Boston office markets and transform it into a vibrant mixed-use environment with a high level of walkability that would appeal to firms with a lot of younger professionals.”

Construction will begin this summer with the entire first phase being online by the end of 2016. Cranshaw Construction, an affiliate of National Development, is the general contractor. Elkus Manfredi Architects of Boston is the master plan and lead architect on the project.

In future phases there is a build-to-suit opportunity of up to 180,000 square feet with signage and branding opportunities on Route 128, and a planned 25,000-square-foot retail building and associated parking deck.