Assembly Square Infill and Small Developments | Somerville

Partners is getting close to being buttoned up, pile driving on Block 6 continues...

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Sorry for all the lens flare. No, I'm not trying to evoke JJ Abrams, they just put burlap over my usual picture place in the garage so I only have a window to look through now.
 
Anyone know if this project is on schedule? Someone who works for Partners sorta mentioned that this was delayed, but i really dont think that this person knows much...
 
scorpio02150 said:
Anyone know if this project is on schedule? Someone who works for Partners sorta mentioned that this was delayed, but i really dont think that this person knows much...
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From Federal Realty's Q3 2015 earnings call a few weeks ago:

At Assembly, construction on the Partners Healthcare complex is proceeding very well and we're hopeful that many of the 4,000-plus employees expected at that location will begin occupying the space by mid-year 2016. The balance of the second phase of Assembly Row is now underway also.
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They note delays and cost overruns at some other projects, so I take "proceeding very well" to mean "on budget and on schedule".
 
Does anyone know if the Partners building will be the tallest building in Somerville (not that that's saying much)?
 
I'm not sure if partners is passing them, but I think the Clarendon Hill Towers are/were the tallest in Somerville. And the worst. Haha.
 
Block 6 is going to be 20 stories plus mechanicals, IIRC
 
Taller than Prospect Hill monument? Or does it not count if it sits on a hill? :)
 
scorpio02150 said:
Anyone know if this project is on schedule? Someone who works for Partners sorta mentioned that this was delayed, but i really dont think that this person knows much...
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JumboBuc said:
From Federal Realty's Q3 2015 earnings call a few weeks ago:



They note delays and cost overruns at some other projects, so I take "proceeding very well" to mean "on budget and on schedule".
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First move in is in June 2016. Which is right on schedule.
 
Cobean said:
First move in is in June 2016. Which is right on schedule.
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I'll believe it. The building is almost fully buttoned-up for the winter and it seems like they're already well underway with interior fit out of the lower floors. 6 months is plenty of time to do first move-ins.

You don't consolidate a whole company at once. Having worked in IT at a 300-person office of a wholly owned subsidiary of a 40,000-person international ad agency, I imagine that even though they've been planning the building for a while, the actual administrative planning for the move of each office is still being vetted... Staff probably won't get notice about their move date until 3 months before move.
 
2BR going from $3,250 to $3,505 incl parking. It's pretty insane but I guess since they have 3 full time staff they figure they can get a better rate and keep them busy filling vacancies.
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The rent increases are insane. When my family moved from Melrose to Boston a couple years ago, that was a big factor in avoiding any properties managed by large companies. So many of those properties' reviews mentioned huge rent increase. We were looking for a place to be for 5+ years and it's hard to budget for 10%+ rent increases every year.
 
fatnoah said:
The rent increases are insane. When my family moved from Melrose to Boston a couple years ago, that was a big factor in avoiding any properties managed by large companies. So many of those properties' reviews mentioned huge rent increase. We were looking for a place to be for 5+ years and it's hard to budget for 10%+ rent increases every year.
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Isn't this a fairly standard dynamic of the relocation "Relo"market?

Relo market = "I'm new in town, I'm feeling rich and hurried in my new job/school, and I don't have time to value-shop, so I'm going to overpay for an apartment in a prime/convenient location while I get to know the town"

After a year or two, they realize that there are (relative) bargains available on transit in less-prime areas, and the landlord hikes the rents for the next round of relos.

Its what makes Beacon Hill, Back Bay, and Harvard Square apartments go for what they go for. That Assembly has joined the relo choice set should be notched as a win.
 
fatnoah said:
The rent increases are insane. When my family moved from Melrose to Boston a couple years ago, that was a big factor in avoiding any properties managed by large companies. So many of those properties' reviews mentioned huge rent increase. We were looking for a place to be for 5+ years and it's hard to budget for 10%+ rent increases every year.
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It's a pretty simple equation. Raise rent by 5%-10% every year until occupancy rates drop below 95%. The only solution is to continue to build more more housing. Seattle built so much housing that the rent is stagnating.
 
On black Friday there was a trending hashtag on twitter of huge empty parking lots at shopping centers. The idea was "if they're not full to capacity on black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year, they will never be near capacity." I went to Assembly on Saturday afternoon and boy was it difficult to find a spot! All the garages were full and all the overflow lots. I waited 10-15 mins for someone to leave. There were probably hundreds of cars circling and trying to find spaces.

I drove because I was on my way to a car-dependent area, normally I take the Orange Line.
 
sm89 said:
On black Friday there was a trending hashtag on twitter of huge empty parking lots at shopping centers. The idea was "if they're not full to capacity on black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year, they will never be near capacity." I went to Assembly on Saturday afternoon and boy was it difficult to find a spot! All the garages were full and all the overflow lots. I waited 10-15 mins for someone to leave. There were probably hundreds of cars circling and trying to find spaces.

I drove because I was on my way to a car-dependent area, normally I take the Orange Line.
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As much as I love the free parking garages at Assembly Row, they probably shouldn't be free. Pricing should probably be similar to CambridgeSide.
 
datadyne007 said:
As much as I love the free parking garages at Assembly Row, they probably shouldn't be free. Pricing should probably be similar to CambridgeSide.
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I agree. Cambridgeside has a really good system for applying just the right amount of market guidance and transit-parity and encouraging shop-and-eat visits while discouraging commuter/event-cheaters.

Particularly as there are more on-site commuter and hotel users.

Below, I've posted the Cambridgeside rates because they do seem to have a good set of tiers (except I hate the penny-back/time-wasting ".99" and would have more pre-pay opportunties)
[CambridgeSide] Parking Rates
1 hour or less $1.99
2 hours or less $2.99
3 hours or less $4.99
4 hours or less $6.99
5 hours or less $8.99
5 hours or more, Daily maximum (exit by 8am) $20
Overnight Rates (exit by 8am) $20

Special Low Price Nights, Weekends & Federal Holidays!
Enter after 5pm Monday - Friday, or Saturday, Sunday and Holidays during garage hours:

0 - 1 hour $1.99
1 - 10 hours (exit by midnight) $3.99
Daily maximum (exit by midnight) $20
Overnight (exit by 8am) $20

Holiday Parking Rates are in effect for all Federal Holidays. Special low rates apply to daily parking until 1am only. Regular overnight parking rates apply.

Restaurant Validation - USE LOWER PARKING GARAGE
Parking validation is available at the following CambridgeSide Galleria restaurants only: California Pizza Kitchen, the Cheesecake Factory and P.F. Chang's China Bistro. Please ask your server regarding validation.

3 hours or less $1.99
3 hours or more Posted rates apply.
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To encourage more shopping but less commuter parking, I'd do a simpler structure:
0 to 2 hours: $2
2 to 4 hours: $3 (get folks for a meal and/or movie)
5 to 8 hours: $5
8+ hours $20
 
I feel like all the free parking makes the on-street meters dumb.
 
The parking needed to be free when Assembly Row first opened, so that people would start venturing there, but now it is very well-established/popular and doesn't need that incentive.
 
I'm pretty sure they're going to start charging. There's a bunch of new parking sinage and equipment lying around under tarps, and I heard someone talking about it the other day.
 
davem said:
I'm pretty sure they're going to start charging. There's a bunch of new parking sinage and equipment lying around under tarps, and I heard someone talking about it the other day.
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I live in Assembly Row and my parking garage has (near Legal Seafood) has the Ethernet cabling in place but maintenance says it may not be used for awhile. The lots near the outdoor bar have wiring as well. My guess is that they are going to wait until 2017 to implement it OR rely on the new massive PHS parking garage which has over 3000 parking spaces during peak hours. The retailers are probably requesting for parking to be free as long as the saturation is below 100%.
 
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