| 
Boston developer Related Beal has signed a long-term ground lease for a 9-building portfolio owned by Boston University in Kenmore Square, including the location of the potential landmark Citgo sign.
Related Real Estate Fund II, which raised $1 billion in late 2015, is the investment vehicle. Terms were not disclosed but a price in the $145 million range was cited by The Real Reporter in July.
BU will work with Related Beal, which is active in residential projects in Boston, to make Kenmore Square “even more attractive as a venue for retail and innovation and as a liveable neighborhood,” BU President Robert Brown said in a statement Friday.
BU hired Newmark Grubb Knight Frank to market the portfolio last winter. The 335,000-square-foot portfolio includes 660 Beacon St., home of the Citgo sign, along with 648 Beacon St., 541 Commonwealth Ave. and 11-19 Deerfield St. Built in the early 20th century, the buildings house office space above retail and restaurants.
The Boston Landmarks Commission in July began a study of the postwar neon sign’s architectural and historic significance. The decision means that commission has review power over changes to the property.
Related Beal is building luxury condominiums at 131 Beverly St. near North Station and recently sold two buildings in its Congress Square portfolio in the Financial District after gaining Boston Redevelopment Authority approval for conversion of the former Fidelity Investments office buildings into residences. It’s also building a 239-unit workforce and affordable housing complex on Beverly Street connected to a 220-room hotel and proposing 280 apartments and condos at the former Quinzani’s Bakery property on Harrison Avenue in the South End.
