BOSTON — Berkeley Investments, a Boston-based real estate investment and development company, has appointed CBRE/New England as exclusive leasing agent for a portfolio of flex and office assets the firm recently acquired along Ballardvale Street in Wilmington, MA.
Mark Reardon, Jason Levendusky and Jake Borden will spearhead CBRE/NE’s efforts to market the properties.
“With our purchase of the Ballardvale Portfolio, Berkeley was able to acquire properties at an attractive basis that offer significant opportunities for additional value creation through our repositioning efforts,” said Young Park, President of Berkeley Investments. “With rents increasing throughout the Boston market, these properties are well positioned to offer the region’s innovative tenants high-quality flex, light manufacturing and office space at a lower price point than other suburban markets, while still offering easy commuting access and an attractive work environment for today’s workforce.”
The three-building, 310,000 square foot Ballardvale Portfolio consists of 299 Ballardvale and 301 Ballardvale Street, two single-story flex properties that are home to tenants including Hub International, Automated Engineering, Inc. (AEI), and Tecomet, Inc. The third property is a two-story office building located at 300 Ballardvale Street that recently underwent well over $1 million in capital improvements, including significant enhancements to the atrium lobbies as well as complete upgrades to the bathrooms and common areas. Berkeley is proceeding to undertake additional upgrades to the properties to position the buildings as premier office and flex buildings along the Route 93 corridor.
“The Ballardvale Portfolio boasts an excellent location just off Interstate 93, centrally located just six miles from Routes 128 and 495 with an array of amenities in an office park environment,” added CBRE/NE’s Reardon. “We look forward to working with Berkeley Investments in helping to further enhance and add value to the Ballardvale assets.”
Just 10 miles from the New Hampshire border and 20 minutes from downtown Boston and Logan Airport, this location offers easy commuting access to a highly skilled labor force stretching from New Hampshire to Boston, and from Boston’s North Shore to its western suburbs. Recently completed commercial developments now also provide numerous new retail amenities including Target, Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts within proximity to the property, with more retail construction expected. Ballardvale Street has emerged as a major corporate address north of Boston, with OSRAM Sylvania recently relocating its headquarters to the Ballardvale Corridor, joining Charles River Labs, which also has its global headquarters along the street. Other major global corporations along the Corridor include AGFA Corporation, Procter & Gamble/Gillette and Pfizer.
Berkeley acquired the properties in December, successfully peeling this local asset from a larger national portfolio for sale, and closed on the transaction all cash with bank financing expected to close shortly. The firm continues to look for acquisition opportunities throughout the Boston market offering in-place income and value-add opportunities. For more information on Berkeley’s purchase, click here.
With a new marketing initiative in place spearheaded by CBRE/New England, along with a local landlord with a proven track record of successfully repositioning properties, the Ballardvale Portfolio is a highly attractive, cost-effective solution for tenants looking for flex, light manufacturing and office space in the market.
