12 Forge Parkway in Franklin. Photo courtesy of CBRE / File
A company co-chaired by former U.S. Sen. John Kerry is set to add solar and battery storage facilities following its acquisition of three suburban Massachusetts industrial properties.
Galvanize Real Estate’s first Massachusetts acquisitions total 360,000 square feet, the San Francisco-based company announced Thursday.
A Galvanize spokesperson declined to provide the addresses of the Bay State properties. However, Joseph Sumberg, head of Galvanize Real Estate, is listed as manager of entities that acquired 12 Forge Parkway in Franklin, 19 Technology Drive in Auburn and 82 South St. in Hopkinton in February.
The properties are part of a six-building portfolio previously acquired in 2021 by Link Logistics Real Estate, a Blackstone company, for $175 million.
“Boston has consistently stood out to us as a compelling market, driven by its strategic location and deep pool of skilled talent that can support the local blue-chip manufacturing industry,” Sumberg said in a statement.
The properties were transferred between two Blackstone-affiliated entities for $1 in February. A $555 mortgage from Wells Fargo Bank was executed in June for the three properties.
Galvanize Real Estate was co-founded in 2021 by Tom Steyer, a billionaire hedge fund manager who was eliminated from the California governor’s race last month after finishing third in a primary.
Former U.S. Sen. John Kerry is the company’s co-chairman.
Galvanize Real Estate’s business plan for the three properties – which it named the Liberty Logistics Portfolio – includes a mixture of electrification, energy reduction and adding on-site renewable energy generation and battery storage, the company said in an announcement. The properties have potential to generate 2.4 megawatts of clean energy, reducing strains on the electrical grid during peak periods, the company estimates.
“From the state’s generous SMART 3.0 program to its variety of demand response programs, Massachusetts is a natural fit for GRE’s profitable decarbonization strategy,” Galvanize Real Estate Head of Sustainability Nicolette Jaze said in a statement.
Galvanize Real Estate closed on a $370 million real estate fund in March. Its nationwide portfolio now totals 3.2 million square feet.
