Georgetown Co. Refinances One Washington

BOSTON—The Georgetown Company, LLC has closed on a $35-million refinancing deal with PNC Bank on its One Washington St. office building here.

The deal arranged by Cushman & Wakefield is structured as a seven-year interest-only financing for the fully occupied 18-story office building in Boston's Financial District. Georgetown Co., based in New York City, acquired the property in 2013.

The property has a tenant roster of 21 and features two penthouse floors, retail on the ground floor, a roof terraces on the fifth floor, a finished and leased basement, and covered parking lot in the sub-basement. Originally built in 1972, the property was most recently renovated in 2006, with nearly $9 million spent in capital upgrades, C&W officials state.

John Alascio, Alex Hernandez, Jay Wagner and Sridhar Vankayala of Cushman & Wakefield Equity, Debt & Structured Finance served as exclusive advisors to the Georgetown Company, LLC in the transaction.

“Lenders were attracted to the property's central location, diverse tenant roster, strong sponsorship and relative low basis to value,” states Alascio, Cushman & Wakefield managing director. “The dynamic Washington Street corridor is a fantastic location and we look forward to further improving the property,” states Jonathan Schmerin, managing principal of Georgetown.

M&As

CBRE/Grossman Retail Advisors announced recently it will merge its operations with CBRE/New England effective Jan.1, 2016.

Jeremy Grossman will continue to lead the urban and agency side of retail operations and Kevin Higgins will continue to lead national and tenant representation efforts.

“We look forward to years of continued success and focusing on our numerous retail and agency clients throughout New England and beyond,” states Grossman. “Working closely with all of the talent at CBRE/NE has catapulted us to this level so this move can only strengthen and enhance our client relations in the future.”

CBRE/Grossman Retail Advisors was formed in 2009 to create the premier retail service provider for its clients and combined the network and resources of the largest commercial real estate service company in the United States with the focus of local knowledge and expertise.

“Building and enhancing CBRE/NE's retail business is an integral part of our long-term strategic plan,” adds CBRE/NE CFO and Co-Managing Partner Kevin Doyle. “These movements further unify our focus on client retention and future pursuits.”

CB Richard Ellis – N.E. Partners, LP, is a joint venture with CBRE Group, Inc. with offices in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maine and New Hampshire.

SALES

Colliers International reports that it has closed on the sale of and secured financing for the Bunker Hill Business Center, a 52,944-square-foot flex office property located at 440 Rutherford Ave. in Boston.

Colliers marketed the property on behalf of New Canaan, CT-based Cambridge Hanover, Inc. TD Street LLC, an affiliate of Center Court Partners LLC, purchased the property for $14.725 million. In addition, Colliers secured a $10.5-million fixed-rate acquisition loan on behalf of the buyer through LStar Capital Finance, Inc., the credit affiliate of Lone Star Funds. Terms of the financing transaction were not disclosed.

Senior vice presidents Scott Dragos and Doug Jacoby along with assistant vice president Tony Hayes and associate Tim Mulhall led the Colliers team that represented the seller. Co-chairman Kevin Phelan and vice president Jeff Black led the Colliers debt placement team.

Bunker Hill Business Center presented an extremely rare opportunity to purchase a Class A quality flex/R&D asset that competes with only a select few buildings in Greater Boston, Colliers officials state.

LEASES

Brokerage firm Savills Studley reports that EMD Serono Inc. the U.S. operating entity of Merck KGaA, has renewed its headquarters lease at One Technology Place in Rockland, MA for 202,000 square feet. The deal is the second largest lease transaction in suburban Boston in 2015.

Mark Stewart and Steve Woodworth of Savills Studley's Boston office represented EMD Serono in the leasing transaction. Rich Beal of Perry Brokerage Associates represented the owner A.W. Perry, Inc.

EMD Seono has maintained its headquarters in the South Shore for more than two decades, according to Savills Studley's Stewart, who notes that the decision to renew at One Technology Drive was a “strategic and cost effective solution for the company.”

K1 Speed, Inc. has leased more than 75,000 square feet of space at 40 Fordham Road in Wilmington, MA from the Wilmington Realty Trust.

Founded in Carlsbad, CA in 2003, K1 Speed is a chain of indoor kart racing tracks with locations across the United States. This is the second location the company has opened in the Greater Boston market and 33rd location in the nation.

“With the great success we have had in Kingston, finding a central, convenient location for a track north of Boston became our next goal,” states Susan Danglard of K1 Speed. “The space in Wilmington was ideal because we can not only attract from Burlington and Andover, but also from the North Shore.”

CBRE/NE's Mark Reardon, with assistance from Lannie Allee in CBRE's San Diego office, represented K1 Speed in the transaction. Colliers' Greg Klemmer, Tim Brodigan and Rob Glor represented the Wilmington Realty Trust.

NEW DEVELOPMENTS

Plano, TX-based Monogram Residential Trust eports it has opened a new project called ZINC in the burgeoning tech/biopharma community in Cambridge, MA. ZINC is a 15-story 392-unit apartment building.

Developed by Wood Partners, the multifamily property is located adjacent to the soon-to-be relocated MBTA Lechmere Station on the Green line, and nearby the Cambridge Galleria, TD Garden and Museum of Science. Among its amenities are a 15,000-square-foot outdoor terrace featuring grilling stations, TVs, a fireplace, a bike shop, pet spa, media room and business center, fitness center a clubroom lounge.

FINANCINGS

CBRE/New England's Multifamily Debt & Structured Finance group reports it arranged $14 million in construction financing for Liberty Place in Quincy, MA.

The developer, BP Liberty LLC, an affiliate of Boston Property Development, closed on the construction financing for the 53-unit, Class-A multifamily property and has already broken ground on the project.

CBRE/NE senior vice president John Kelly and financial analyst Sam Dylag procured financing for the buyer. Located at 999 Hancock St., Liberty Place will also feature 67 garage parking spaces.