An Wang, founder of the now-defunct computer maker, selected theTewksbury site in the early 1960s, when Route 495 was still in itsplanning stages. Between 1963 and 1980, Wang developed 755,000 sfof office and research space in the property before moving to a 1.2million sf headquarters in nearby Lowell. Wang Laboratories wasultimately reduced to rubble when the computer hardware industrycrashed in the late 1980s, with the last vestiges of the one-timegiant finally disappearing earlier this year after being bought byGetronics, a Dutch high-tech company.

Paul Johnson of Boston Real Estate Partners says he believes thecomplex should do well under Berkeley's stewardship. Not only havethe existing buildings been continuously upgraded and modernizedover the years, Johnson notes that the property has 3,150 linearfeet of frontage along Route 495, giving any new tenants goodhighway visibility. BREP Principal Kevin J. Barry, who brokered thesale along with Johnson, says 250,000 sf of contiguous office/flexspace is available immediately, while an additional 180,000 sfcould be delivered over the short term.

Aiding Berkeley's plan is the strength of the suburban northoffice market, which has rebounded in the past three years after adifficult beginning to the 1990s. Johnson says the vacancy rate inthe market is at 4%, down from 7% a year ago. High-tech andfiber-optic companies have fueled much of the demand in theregion.