ROBERT E. GRIFFIN JR.
Expects to draw interest

H.N. Gorin Inc. is putting two prime commercial properties up for sale, but the Boston-based real estate investment and development company is hardly abandoning its hometown, as evidenced by intentions to construct a new office building in the Hub’s North Station district.

While stressing that “there is no plan in place,” principal Rosalind Gorin said last week her firm has retained Elkus/Manfredi Architects to determine the scope of what could be constructed on the 14,000-square-foot parcel, a site located at the gateway to North Station adjacent to an existing gas station. H.N. Gorin has notified the Boston Redevelopment Authority and Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s office that it is considering the idea, Gorin explained, but she added the firm will wait to meet with city officials and abutters to gauge their thoughts about what would fit before designing the project envelope.

“This is highly preliminary,” Gorin said. “We want to be respectful of the abutters, and we want to understand what their issues are and make sure whatever we do fits in with the surrounding environment Â… There is a process that needs to be followed, and we want to make sure people are [included] in that process.”

‘A Lot of Attention’
Gorin’s firm is certainly familiar with the area, having developed the 101 Merrimac St. office building at North Station in the 1980s and also as owner of nearby One Bowdoin Square, an 11-story office building straddling North Station and the Government Center district. The Bowdoin Square property is one of the two assets H.N. Gorin is putting up for sale, having retained Cushman & Wakefield of Massachusetts to peddle it and 55 Summer St. in the city’s Downtown Crossing district.

“It’s an extraordinary building,” Gorin said of One Bowdoin Square, which her firm is offering either together with 55 Summer St. or separately, depending on investor interest. There is no asking price, she said. Designed by Graham Gund Architects, One Bowdoin Square was purchased by H.N. Gorin in 1999, a time when the area was still considered a bit of a pioneering location. Since then, however, commercial activity has migrated toward that part of town, aided by the recent redevelopment of a state office building across Cambridge Street into a mix of office space and residential units.

“People laughed at us, but that has worked out very well,” Gorin said of One Bowdoin Square, adding that the firm is equally pleased with the performance of 55 Summer St., a property that certainly had its share of adventures in recent years.

Located prominently in Downtown Crossing, the 10-story, 126,000-square-foot retail/office building on Summer Street was acquired in 1997 for $19.8 million. Gorin’s firm offered 55 Summer St. for sale through another local brokerage house last year before pulling it briefly off the sales block. Gorin would not discuss what prompted her company to retrench initially, but voiced confidence that the property will be well received by the investment community.

“It’s a great building, and in many ways you hate to sell it, but the timing seems right,” said Gorin, a view underscored by the pending disposition of nearby 10 and 24 School St., another Downtown Crossing retail/office hybrid under agreement to an Irish investor for a reported $32 million. Also being marketed by Cushman & Wakefield’s Capital Markets Group on behalf of Lincoln Property Co., 10 and 24 School St. is similar to 55 Summer St. in that it features a strong retail anchor in Borders Books & Music. The 55 Summer St. building is home to CVS Pharmacy, which has a 14,000-square-foot store on the ground floor.

Retail has been among the most popular targets of real estate investors in the past year, and Cushman & Wakefield of Massachusetts President Robert E. Griffin Jr. said last week he believes 55 Summer St. will receive interest similar to that garnered for 10 and 24 School St., which attracted more than 20 bids and will apparently sell well above the $25 million range most observers had pegged the deal at when it was first put on the market.

“It will get a lot of attention,” Griffin said of 55 Summer St., citing the strong retail location and Gorin’s successful stewardship of the asset. That oversight has not always been easy, with clothier Syms Corp. opening a five-level, 65,000-square-foot store in 1998 that soon became a disaster for the New Jersey-based company, leading to its closing barely two years after signing an unusually long 20-year lease. Various factors were blamed for the problems, including the store’s launch just as the casual wear craze was hitting Boston, a trend that did not match Syms’ focus on business attire.

H.N. Gorin’s belief in the site as a retail destination was ultimately rewarded, however, when CVS agreed to lease the entire first floor, allowing the remaining space to be recast for office uses. Ironically, Gorin said that was the basic vision her firm initially had for 55 Summer St. before Syms showed up, and that concept has seemingly borne out as the CVS operation has become among the chain’s top performers. Gorin said she believes there is still upside available for 55 Summer St., especially given a broad plaza in front of the building that offers the potential to construct additional space.

Parting with 55 Summer St. or One Bowdoin Square was not an easy decision, said Gorin, explaining the firm ultimately determined that the super-heated capital market offers the best chance for reaping a profit. “I could make a good case for holding onto them, but it’s important to realize a good return for our investors, and we think the market is so strong right now that it makes sense [to sell],” said Gorin, who added that other properties such as 101 Merrimac St. and 955 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge will remain in the company’s portfolio.

As for the North Station project, Gorin said her firm expects to meet with abutters over the near term and will then have a better sense of what should be constructed. Whatever is built will be in scale with the surrounding area, she said, meaning a tower is not likely, partly to match the area, but also due to the challenges of permitting a large property and then leasing a substantial amount of space. A smaller, signature asset for a single tenant is one possibility, she said, noting that the parcel would offer strong sight lines for anyone occupying the building.

Gorin said she is also encouraged by the recent improvement in Boston’s office market, one which has struggled for several years but has finally begun to stabilize. “There is real rent growth,” noted Gorin, adding she believes the depression of the Central Artery and proximity to public transportation should make North Station even more attractive to companies in the future.