Fenway Park is shown, with Samuels & Associates' Boylston Street developments behind. The Van Ness office building is in the upper right of the photo. iStock photo / File
The Boston Red Sox are expanding their real estate footprint in the Fenway with a major lease at an office building developed by Boston-based Samuels & Associates.
The franchise leased over 100,000 square feet at 1325 Boylston St. Known as the Van Ness, the 237,000 square-foot tower was completed in 2015.
The organization will occupy the entire top three floors of the 11-story tower, according to a Suffolk County Registry of Deeds filing.
The transaction raises questions about previous plans for the team offices to occupy a new office building being proposed on the site of the 55 Lansdowne St. garage.
The Red Sox previously said their front offices and Fenway Sports Group planned to occupy a majority of that 250,000 square-foot building overlooking the Green Monster, although no formal agreement was in place. The new offices would replace space within the ballpark and offices at 82 and 92 Brookline Ave.
Known as Fenway Corners North, the Lansdowne Street project is a partnership with Boston-based WS Development. Developers haven’t submitted updated plans for the office building since December, when it was under review by the Boston Civic Design Commission.
The proposed Lansdowne Street office building would be the first phase of a larger mixed-use development on 5.3 acres surrounding the ballpark that’s a partnership between the Red Sox ownership, WS Development and the D’Angelo family that owns the ‘47 sports apparel brand.
Messages were left with WS Development and Fenway Sports Group seeking comment.
The 237,000 square-foot Van Ness opened in 2015 and leased a majority of the building to Optum, a digital health records company. The project also included an apartment tower of the same name and a retail podium anchored by Target.
The Red Sox lease at the Van Ness is expected to commence in November and run for six years. The team has an option to extend the lease for an additional five years.
The Red Sox also will get access to a penthouse roof deck and signage rights.
At the midyear market, the Fenway/Kenmore office submarket had a 29 percent vacancy rate, according to CBRE, and average asking rents of $71.85 per square foot.
