LEXINGTON, Mass. — A planned 130-unit apartment complex in Lexington has secured $45.75 million in construction financing, clearing a major hurdle for a project that would bring one of the town’s first high-end multifamily developments in more than two decades.
JLL Capital Markets announced Sept. 16 that it arranged the financing for 7 Hartwell Avenue on behalf of Dinosaur Capital Partners. The fully funded construction loan was provided through Affinius.
The five-story development, located at the intersection of Hartwell Avenue and Westview Street, is scheduled for completion in June 2028. Plans call for a mix of studios and one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, including 20 affordable units.
The project will include 132 parking spaces, with 90 located underground and 42 at the surface. Other amenities will include a resident courtyard with grilling stations, a 400-square-foot café with outdoor seating, a fitness center and other lifestyle-focused spaces.
Sustainability is also a central element of the project. The development is designed to pursue Passive House certification and will feature an all-electric building, advanced stormwater management systems and proposed rooftop solar panels.
The financing comes as developers and lenders continue to focus on housing opportunities in communities surrounding Boston, particularly locations with access to major employment centers and transportation infrastructure.
7 Hartwell Avenue is approximately three miles from the Alewife MBTA Red Line station and offers access to Route 2 and Interstate 95/Route 128. The development is also situated near the Route 128/Route 2 life sciences and technology corridor.
Major employers in the surrounding area include Novo Nordisk, Takeda and MIT Lincoln Laboratory. Boston Children’s Hospital’s research facility is located directly across from the development site, according to JLL.
The nearby Route 128 office corridor in Waltham contains approximately 16.9 million square feet of office space and is home to headquarters or regional operations for companies including Thermo Fisher Scientific, Repligen, Fresenius Medical Care, AstraZeneca and National Grid.
JLL said the area within a one-mile radius of the project has median household incomes exceeding $175,000. The company also cited Lexington’s housing market, where median home sale prices have reached $2.1 million.
The development would add to Lexington’s relatively limited multifamily housing inventory. According to JLL, 7 Hartwell Avenue represents one of the first Class A multifamily developments in the community in more than 20 years.
“7 Hartwell Avenue addresses a critical housing shortage in one of Greater Boston’s most desirable communities,” Anthony Cutone, a managing director with JLL Capital Markets, said in a statement.
Cutone said the lender’s financing reflects its assessment of the project’s location, the development team and the fundamentals of the Lexington market. He said the financing structure also reflects confidence in the project and its sponsors.
The JLL Capital Markets debt advisory team included Cutone, Director Madeline Joyce, and associates Michael Schwarze and Joe Marinaro.
For Dinosaur Capital Partners, the financing allows the project to move forward from its shovel-ready stage toward construction. Once completed, the development is expected to add 130 new rental homes, including 20 affordable units, to the Lexington housing market.
The project is also positioned within the broader Route 128 corridor, where proximity to biotechnology, health care, technology and other major employers has helped make the area an important employment center in Greater Boston.
With construction scheduled to begin following the financing, 7 Hartwell Avenue is expected to be completed in June 2028. The project will bring new rental housing, commercial amenities and a sustainability-focused residential development to a Lexington market that has seen relatively little high-end multifamily construction in recent decades.
