Lee Partners of New England

I, like many of you have not visited my desk at my office for many months – it sits alone in my office in my mostly vacant office building where my work used to be completed – before Covid-19.  Meeting with clients in my conference room does not happen, saying hello to others working on my floor or while visiting the building cafeteria does not happen.  Seeing the office space cleaners does not happen.  Walking to close-by amenities does not happen and many are not open.  It would be easier to find a close-by parking space because so many fellow employees are also working from home offices, but I do not look for office parking space.

The current situation for office space users, as difficult as it is, will not last.  So many professionals are working so hard to find a way to overcome Covid-19 that, as they say, we shall overcome! 

In the meantime, responsible corporate and small business owners and senior staff having decision making responsibilities must plan for a brighter future – where many if not most employees will be back at a desk, working and collaborating with others in the office.  

Now is the time to review the current leasehold commitments and project your ideal future corporate and employee office requirements – and design an office occupancy path forward that can work as Covid-19 health and travel conditions are mitigated thru new therapies and the availability of a vaccine that works.  

Here is the review process:  

1. Review your lease document to fully understand your current responsibilities
2. Meet with a Commercial Real Estate broker/consultant to discuss your current and going forward obligations to your employees, stakeholders, and Landlord.
3. Obtain a consensus with your senior staff and other key employees as to how much and what type of office space can best fit your needs for the future as the Covid 19 crises becomes more manageable.
4. Review the local market landscape to understand current conditions and how the lack of demand for office space and the availability of sublease options may open up pockets of opportunity for either re-negotiations with your landlord or for a relocation to more appropriate office space to meet a re-evaluated company space requirement.
5. Review a current office space survey from your broker that identifies all the available office space alternatives in your market area that would be economically feasible to consider.
6. Narrow down the available office alternatives to a hand-full and do research on these options to make sure they are viable alternatives.
7. Schedule and visit available office buildings and tour the suites that could possibly meet your future needs.
8. Review and discuss a draft Request for Proposal with your broker, edit its content to make sure it conveys current and future office space needs, and then send it to a few alternatives that appear to meet your needs.
9. Upon return, review the responses with senior staff and your well-versed and experienced commercial real estate broker.
10. Either send a Request for Proposal to your current landlord, or if in close contact with your landlord, meet and commence negotiations to determine if it makes sense to remain in your existing space depending on the terms and conditions offered.  Prior to this meeting you will have the benefit of knowing the economics of other competitive offerings.
11. Over the course of hundreds of lease negotiations, I have found that the least stressful and disruptive path for office users planning for their future (pre-covid 19) would be to either renew or extend their office space lease.  Approximately 80% of all office leases are renewed or extended at the end of their lease term.  This still leaves 20% of all leases where alternative action takes place – relocation, downsizing, expanding, purchasing a property, committing to a ‘build to suit” property, or closing down operations entirely.
12. For a relocation path to be viable the cost savings associated with a relocation would have to offset the cost of moving – the move cost itself, new furniture, new IT infrastructure, business disruption due to the planning, evaluation of alternatives, senior management time devoted to the process, and allocating an internal move-coordinator or hiring an outside vendor to oversee the entire move process.  The numbers need to “add up” and employee “buy-in” would be a key consideration for any geographic move.

The combination of working with a very experienced commercial real estate broker, with your senior staff commitment to meet the covid-19 occupancy challenge, can and will result in a path forward to meet current and future occupancy needs and the “vacant desk” will become a relic of the past – you just need to get started now on the path outlined above.

We can help – my recommendations have assisted hundreds of companies in the suburban Boston market to identify and implement the best path forward when evaluating their occupancy options.

Vacant desks can and should be filled with hard working employees that are collaborating and using their talents and imagination to meet company objectives.  We can help with this transformation to a more productive and brighter future.

Bruce S. Lee

bruce@leepartners.com  781.290.8101 (cell phone direct)

Big Picture Framing will be moving into 1110 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA on January 1, 2021. Bruce Lee of Lee Partners conducted the search for the new retail location and helped Founder Bob Clayton negotiate the long term lease with building owner Gwen Marie, LLC. This location proved to be an ideal new store address for Big Picture Framing. Business has been strong for the regional retail chain throughout the 2020 Pandemic and this new retail store will help Big Picture Framing to continue to increase sales and better serve its Cambridge customers. The “Grand Opening” is just around the corner – positive news during the 2020 Pandemic – proving that smart business owners are moving forward and taking advantage of current market conditions to lease cost effective space at newly available locations.

Jeffrey Arsenault, Principal-Retail with Avison Young represented and negotiated for the
Landlord.

IDEX Biometrics has extended their lease of 14,010 sq ft. of office and engineering space at 187 Ballardvale Street in Wilmington, MA. Bruce Lee with Lee Partners advised and assisted IDEX in a review of current IDEX office space requirements and with the negotiations with their landlord 187 Ballardvale LLC. This lease extension was the result of maintaining good relations and communication between IDEX and the landlord that resulted in a “win-win” outcome for both parties. IDEX was able to secure their space throughout 2021 during the Pandemic of 2020-2021; and the Landlord was able to keep a valued tenant during these unprecedented times. IDEX will now have additional time to determine its long term occupancy needs without the business interruption required by a immediate relocation decision.

The landlord will have the opportunity to continue to work with IDEX in an effort to meet their long term needs. Both parties benefited from this deal.Representing landlord management was  Marci Griffith Loeber of Griffith Properties. Representing the property was Brian Tisbert, Managing Director with Jones Lange & LaSalle.

Tingley Electric Services moves Headquarters office during the Pandemic of 2020!

Tingley Electric Services, Inc., located in Natick, MA relocated to 115 Cedar Street in Milford, MA during the month of November, 2020.  Bruce Lee of Lee Partners of New England, LLC represented the business owner Vincent Tingley and coordinated the search and acquisition process throughout 2020.  This required multiple property tours along the Rt. 495 suburban commercial real estate market area.  The Tenley Electric requirement was for a combination of corporate offices,  conference training room space, and warehouse space for storage of materials to meet expansion needs.  Tingley Electric is unique in that as an electrical contractor they service the residential market only – as opposed to most other electric companies servicing both commercial and residential customers in this area.  Tingley Electric maintains strict safety and health standards during the pandemic while employees visit customers –  and this has allowed this business to thrive and grow. Vincent Tingley (Vinny) is totally dedicated to his employees and his residential customers as he truly values long term relationships with customers, employees, and others within the communities he services.

Bruce Lee felt proud and honored to work with Vinny during the relocation process as the new location is a perfect fit for the space required –  and for the access to close-by roadway connections.

Representing the Landlord, Winston Holdings, LLC, was Alison Powers, Senior Vice President with Jones Lange LaSalle.  Jon Bovarnick represented and negotiated terms on behalf of Winston Holdings, LLC.

Bruce Lee of Lee Partners represented Big Picture Framing in the relocation of their industrial operations space in Stoneham to 3 First Avenue, Peabody, MA effective on July 1, 2020. Bruce represented and assisted Bob Clayton the co-founder and CEO of Big Picture Framing in the negotiations. Representing the owner was Mark Shapiro of The Drumlin Group. Big Picture Framing has 14 operating retail stores in the Boston metro area that were recently allowed to “open up” according to Massachusetts state guidelines. Bob indicated that the stores were experiencing strong startup business from pent-up customer demand. Let’s hope this trend continues into the future.

3 First Avenue, Peabody, MA

Bruce Lee of Lee Partners of New England represented IDEX Biometrics in the extension of their lease at 187 Ballardvale Street in Wilmington, MA. The lease extension allows IDEX to further review their future office space requirements during the ongoing Coronavirus Pandemic – as they expect accelerated growth in the future with their expanding business. Bruce worked

closely throughout the transaction with Derek D’Antilio, CFO, and Kristen Ryan, Office Manager for IDEX Biometrics to achieve this lease extension. The Landlord – 187 BOP TT, LLC and Griffith Properties – were represented by Brian Tisbert, Managing Director with Jones Lange LaSalle of Boston, MA.

Marci Griffith Loeber, Managing Principal with Griffith Properties , cooperated with the IDEX Biometrics extension request and was instrumental in approving the transaction.

Broadcast Pix has moved from their location at 27 Industrial Way in Chelmsford to 141 Middlesex Street in Tyngsborough, MA . Bruce Lee of Lee Partners represented Broadcast Pix in the search and selection of their new headquarters location in Tyngsborough. The owner of the Tyngsborough space was represented by Taylor Saulnier, Associate and Jeremy Cyrier, President of Mansard Commercial Real Estate. Bruce Lee helped Graham Sharp, CEO and Kelley Downing, Office Manager for Broadcast Pix throughout the relocation process. Graham Sharp, CEO was especially pleased with the search process and results that Bruce Lee was able to achieve.

141 Middlesex Street in Tyngsborough, MA

Bruce Lee of Lee Partners of New England represented the Deflice Family Land Trust in the sale of 3 Loomis Street, Bedford, MA – a 5,4000 sq ft. office building to Jerry McNamara. Jerry is the founder and president of Builderware – a company that focuses exclusively on providing business to business e commerce solutions that allow companies to market and sell more effectively than thru direct customer relationship channels. Lee Partners also represented the buyer in the transaction. Extensive renovations are underway to transform the building into the new world headquarters location for Builderware. The building had been in the Deflice family since it was built by Dominic Deflice Sr. in 1985. Bruce Lee has been the leasing agent and the sales agent for the Deflice family since 3 Loomis Street was converted to a commercial property.

3 Loomis Street, Bedford, MA

Bruce Lee of Lee Partners of New England represented Jeff Goldberg of Sarajeha Realty Trust in the sale of a 21,600 sq ft Lexington office building to 4 Militia LLC in February of this year. David Smerling, Jeff’s attorney along with Jeff Goldberg helped immensely with the sale process. Bruce also represented the buyer in the $4,150,000 sale. The building was fully leased at the time of the sale. The new buyer has made infrastructure improvements – and will self- manage the property. Jeff Goldberg, longtime owner of this building, was very happy with the sale outcome that Bruce was able to achieve especially after back-filling the then available vacant office space with a long-term new tenant.

$4,150,000 sale of 4 Militia Drive, Lexington, MA

Lee Partners of New England Managing Partner and commercial broker Bruce Lee, working on behalf of Kurian Limited Partnership, has brokered the sale of 101 N. Meridian Avenue a one- acre parcel in the Channelside District of downtown Tampa Florida for $6,075,000.

Lee Partners teamed up with the Avocat Group located in Tampa FL for the assignment.

“The Avocat Group brokerage team consisting of Co-Founder Walt Batansky; Matt Sultenfuss SIOR: and Shirley Smith, Office Manager provided outstanding “on the ground” professional  brokerage support over a multi-year process, an ultimately successful marketing effort“, said Lee.

The 101 N Meridian site was combined with 111 N Meridian Avenue and the City of Tampa approved  a mixed-use development project consisting of a total of 460,000 sq ft of retail, multifamily, and self-storage components for the project.  Construction is projected to commence in 2020 with completion scheduled for 2021-2022.

The proposed development required multiple professional groups working together to submit and gain approval for a city council zoning change, and after a lengthy process this allowed the project to move forward.

The buyer,  BlueTiger Properties, LLC – a Georgia Limited Liability Company.  The buyer was represented by Robert H. Gidel, Jr, Esq. with the law firm of Gardner, Brewer, Martinez- Monfort of Tampa, FL.  The seller, Kurian Limited Partnership was represented by Louis Levine Esq. with the firm of D’Agustine, Levine, Parra & Netburn, PC, located in Acton, Massachusetts.

“Rob Gidel Jr, Esq. was the key person leading the efforts for Bluetiger Properties to assemble the development team, meet with town residents and local officials, present project development components to the City Council, and ultimately earn the zoning change required to allow Bluetiger to purchase two parcels needed to win approvals for the proposed project” said Lee.

In addition,  “Rob provided crystal clear communications and professional guidance throughout the extended due diligence and approval and closing process”.

Commercial broker Steven Silverman of Tampa Commercial Real Estate represented Bluetiger Properties in the purchase.