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Good Buy

COVENTRY, RI — The suburbanBoston investors who acquiredCoventry Crossing four years agothis month paid a pretty penny indoing so, but their confidence hasnow been rewarded in the form of its$11.6 million sale to an affiliate ofCole Capital. The deal that equatesto a 6.69 percent capitalization ratecompares to $9.7 million the 21,000-sfretail plaza last changed hands for in2009 when developer Kenneth W.Hecht engaged Marcus & Millichapto find a taker despite the then-aus-tere investment market.

Fortunately for the sellers in bothinstances, skittish investors foundprime retail to be a safe investmentthen and now, often for single-tenantproduct but in the case of Coventry

THE REAL REPORT

continued on page 18

SEPTEMBER 13, 2013

A COMPENDIUM OF COMMERCIAL PROPERTY & CAPITAL NEWS

THIS WEEK’S ISSUEAdobe News Flash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Foster Fare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Downtown Looking Up . . . . . . . . . . . . 5ReUse Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Bud Wiser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 BY MIKE HOBAN

DEDHAM — February’sinvestment in a 1.1-mil-lion-sf suburban port-

folio appears to be payingnear-instant dividends forthe Davis Cos., according tosources who claim theAmerican Red Cross hascommitted to renew forapproximately 177,000 sfhere at 100 Rustcraft Rd.The firm is separately work-

RBJ’s Purpura Assesses Buyout Deal

Coventry Crossing, Coventry RI

BY JOE CLEMENTS

BOSTON — In becoming managingprincipal at Richards Barry Joyce &Partners following

the real estate services

firm’s acquisition byH o u s t o n - b a s e dTranswestern, founding

RBJ team member Steven M. Purpurastresses his career as an urban brokerageprofessional focused on Cambridge will

remain active.“We are not going to

let this impact ourclient focus one iota,”he declares of any suchconcerns. “That is thelast thing Houstonwants, it is the last

BY JOE CLEMENTS

BURLINGTON — The principals ofproduct development firm FoliageInc. are clearly pleased over the

firm’s continued growth,but not so much theprospect of being forcedto leave its headquartershere at Northwest Parkto accommodate moreemployees. Fortunately,a solution has beenreached to avoid such a

dilemma, with landlord Nordblom Co. andFoliage real estate advisor NAI/HunnemanCommercial Corp. crafting a solution toupgrade an adjacent building the tenant

will relocate into byyear’s end.

“They really wantedto stay, and we wereable to make that hap-pen,” NAI/Hunnemanprincipal MichaelMcCarthy explains of a

continued on page 19 100 Rustcraft Rd., Dedham MA

1.1-MSF Portfolio Brings $5M in Sale,177,000-SF Lease LOI for Davis Cos.

Foliage Taking 60,000SF at Northwest

RBJ NAMESFIVE PARTNERS

SEE PAGE 20

continued on page 22

continued on page 23Jim Boudrot Michael McCarthy

Steven M. Purpura Thomas Ashe

BY ANTHONY PAPANTONIS

BOSTON — With its rich architecturalhistory, metropolitan Boston is hometo a vast array of buildings well-suit-

ed to be re-developed while preservingtheir historical significance. Beginning

with Old BostonCity Hall’s conver-sion into restaurantand office space in1969 and FaneuilHall’s transforma-tion into a populartourist/retail desti-nation, there is anextensive list of out-dated buildingsadapted for newpurposes. Lesser

known but historically significant build-ings also populate the list, such as the1874 Henry Willis Building at 175Purchase St. in the Financial Districtwhich Nauset Construction recently con-verted into the new Brazilian consulate foran affiliate of Core Investments Inc. The

building is expected to be approved by theNational Register of Historic Places in2014. Obsolete mills, factories and schools

with less historical significance but struc-turally sound have also been re-purposed

Repurposing History: Rewards and Realities

continued on page 20

6 THE REAL REPORTER September 13, 2013

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ANTHONY PAPANTONIS

REAL IDEAS

Old Boston City Hall, Boston MA

September13, 2013

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20 THE REAL REPORTER September 13, 2013

as office, industrial, retail andmulti-family properties throughoutNew England.

The positives for re-purposingare numerous, beginning withretaining a building’s rich history.Older buildings often have a greatstory to tell and provide education-al, economic, religious and architec-tural resources that reflect the com-munity’s transition from past topresent. Many historic buildings arealso located adjacent to centers ofgovernment, commerce and educa-tion, making them attractive for newsmart growth initiatives. And froman economic perspective, the archi-tectural features, materials andcraftsmanship would be cost-pro-hibitive to replicate in today’s mar-ket. Lastly, the environmentalimpact of renovating existing versusdemolishing and disposal provideslong-term environmental benefits.

One key at the outset is todetermine the viability of preserv-ing an older property. Three histor-ically significant buildings in thecity of Quincy were recently consideredfor adaptive re-use, but only two made thegrade while the other was demolished. OldCity Hall (a Classic Greek Revival buildingdating to 1844 and on the NationalRegister of Historic Places) was in disre-pair and had problems with the masonry,windows and roof plus heating, lighting,and building code issues. However, therestoration was approved based on itssolid structure and aesthetic qualities.Conversely, the old Quincy High Schoolwas considered a historically significantcomponent of the Quincy Center LocalHistoric District, yet was demolished dueto structural and re-purposing issues.

Coddington Hall, built in 1908 as anelementary school and designed byBoston Museum of Fine Arts architectCharles Brigham, was not such an easydecision. The building had been previous-ly adapted for many purposes (includingas home to Quincy College), but is in needof much work—exterior restoration, anew slate roof and copper gutters, newwindows, plus asbestos abatement. Thecombination of its historical value and

structural soundness makes it suitable fora practical use and is now being convertedto house Quincy’s school administration aswell as the City’s information technologyfunctions.

“City Hall was a slam dunk to savebecause of the history and its prominence,but Coddington Hall was a challengebecause some people did not see it as his-torically important,” said Steve Wessling,CEO of Wessling Architects (which pro-vided preservation and interior designservices for the project). “But we did ourresearch and saw that we could move allof the city departments into theCoddington and it would be an outstand-ing adaptive re-use of the building.”

Developers seeking to embrace theadaptive re-use method should be awareof the delicate balancing act between sup-port for repurposing older buildings andthe economic viability of a given project.The key to successful redevelopment ofan existing building comes down to howmuch investigative work the developer iswilling to perform beforehand, andwhether a sponsor is willing to commit the

capital necessary to conduct properand thorough due diligence.

Pre-construction, design andplanning are absolutely imperativeelements as any owner who hasfailed to account for contingencieson a similar project can attest. Thisbegins with a thorough pre-con-struction survey that includesextensive soil and building testingfor contaminants, a structural analy-sis and building envelope study –which often requires exploratorywork in walls, roof and foundationsystems to mitigate unforeseen con-ditions. Another consideration iswhether the building can be upgrad-ed to an acceptable level of energyefficiency. Coddington Hall’s projectteam initially had concerns aboutthe ability to insulate masonry walls,but was able to achieve efficiencythrough the use of high perform-ance roof insulation and energy effi-cient windows.

Experienced developers alsoknow they must work in harmonywith local historic commissions, asmany projects have been delayedwhen artifacts have been found andneed to be collected and document-

ed. Those seeking to reduce their overallcosts via historic tax credits and preserva-tion grants should be aware that historiccommissions’ criteria can vary widely bylocale and can be a challenging and oftentime-consuming process.

Adaptive re-use preserves historywhile revitalizing neighborhoods, anddevelopers who are willing to performproper due diligence can reap enormousbenefits while also serving our communi-ties. The historic renovation process alsominimizes the impact on the environmentand can yield financial incentives via ener-gy and tax credits to help support buildingrestoration costs. While adaptive re-use isnot without its challenges, the rewards todevelopers, occupants and the communityat large are innumerable as we breathenew life into our rich historical past. n

Anthony Papantonis is President of

Nauset Construction Corporation, the

construction manager for both the

Quincy City Hall and Coddington Hall

historic renovation projects currently

underway in Quincy, MA.

Real Ideascontinued from page 6

175 Purchase St., Boston MA