Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market

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Boston.com - February 16, 2010
Simon eyes Faneuil Hall Marketplace, other malls
February 16, 2010 12:15 PM E-mail| |Comments (0)| Text size ? +

By Casey Ross, Globe Staff

Simon Property Group, one of the region's largest mall operators, is offering $10 billion to buy bankrupt rival General Growth Properties, which operates Boston's Faneuil Hall Marketplace and declared bankruptcy last year after struggling to refinance its massive debt load.

Simon, which operates Copley Place in Boston and 14 other malls across Massachusetts, announced its offer today, saying it has the support of a committee of General Growth's creditors that have advised the company to pursue the sale.

General Growth, which also operates the struggling Natick Collection mall, declared bankructy with 158 of its 200 malls nationwide last April after struggling for months to refinance its $27 billion in debt.

In December, the Chicago-based company filed a plan to restructure $9.7 billion in debt with hopes of removing at least 92 malls, including Faneuil Hall Marketplace, from bankruptcy protection by the end of the year.

But Simon claims its offer would be a better value for General Growth's creditors, lenders, and shareholders.

"This acquisition also offers a compelling value-creation opportunity for Simon shareholders," Simon chief executive David Simon said today. "Simon's strong track record of successfully completing large acquisitions and our history of delivering superior property-level performance ideally position Simon to create additional value with General Growth's portfolio."

In a letter to General Growth's board of directors, Simon urged the company to accept the $10 billion bid.

"Our offer is not open-ended, particularly given the uncertain economic environment that exists today," he wrote.

Simon said its bid includes a $7 billion payment to creditors and approximately $3 billion to General Growth shareholders. The offer could be amended to provide shareholders with Simon stock instead of cash. In total, the offer comes to $9 per share for General Growth.

Michael Stamer, counsel for the Official Committee of General Growth's Unsecured Creditors, said: "Full cash payment to all unsecured creditors and the substantial recovery for equity holders that Simon has proposed would be a great result. We fully support and encourage prompt engagement by the company with Simon."

Indianapolis-based Simon owns or has an interest in 382 properties comprising 261 million square feet of leasable space in North America, Europe, and Asia.

In Massachusetts, Simon operates South Shore Plaza in Braintree, Burlington Mall, Atrium Mall, the Northshore Mall in Peabody, and the Wrentham Outlets, among others.
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This says a lot about what Faneuil Hall is / has become.

What was the city this forum was ridiculing for being "owned" by Simon?
 
It's not clear that Simon would keep Faneuil Hall after buying General Growth, however. Do they own any other outdoor, non-mall properties?
 
Simon malls are often (always?) held by REITS backed by pension funds. SPG takes a management fee (and many other fees) off the top.
 
Boston Globe - Febuary 17, 2010
Simon makes $10b takeover bid
General Growth deal would alter mall landscape

By Casey Ross, Globe Staff | February 17, 2010

Simon Property Group would further consolidate its hold on the major shopping destinations of Massachusetts if it succeeds with its $10 billion offer for bankrupt rival General Growth Properties, operator of Faneuil Hall Marketplace and the Natick Collection.

Simon yesterday disclosed it had made the offer to General Growth a week ago, but the bankrupt company has not responded. In its announcement, Simon said its bid has the backing of the committee that represents General Growth?s unsecured creditors.

If accepted, the deal would have significant implications for consumers and retailers in Massachusetts, where Simon already operates 15 malls and shopping destinations, including Copley Place in Boston, the Mall at Chestnut Hill, and the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets.

Some industry specialists said the acquisition would give Simon more leverage to increase rents on retailers, resulting in higher prices for consumers.

?It?s a cause for concern,?? said Scott Krugman, spokesman for the National Retail Federation, a trade group for store owners. ?Competition is the cornerstone of our business. This could have negative impacts on prices and services.??

General Growth, based in Chicago, filed for bankruptcy protection last April after struggling for months to restructure its $27 billion in debt. It included 158 of its 200 malls in the bankruptcy filing. It recently asked the bankruptcy judge for more time to reorganize and pay off its creditors, but Simon?s offer was meant to force the company?s hand.

In a letter to General Growth?s board of directors, Simon chief executive David Simon argued his offer would deliver the best value for General Growth?s creditors, lenders, and shareholders. The offer includes a $7 billion payment to creditors and approximately $3 billion to General Growth shareholders.

?We urge you to instruct your management and financial and legal advisors to immediately engage seriously with us,?? Simon wrote. ?Our offer is not open-ended, particularly given the uncertain economic environment that exists today.??

Michael Stamer, a lawyer representing the committee of General Growth?s unsecured creditors, said in a statement: ?Full cash payment to all unsecured creditors and the substantial recovery for equity holders that Simon has proposed would be a great result. We fully support and encourage prompt engagement by the company with Simon.??

A spokeswoman for General Growth did not respond to requests for comment yesterday.

In the meantime, local retailers and others were left to ponder the possible impact of an acquisition.

Carol Troxell, head of Faneuil Hall Merchants Association, said several of her members called her wondering what the deal would mean for their businesses. She said the primary concern is protecting the tradition of Faneuil Hall as a place for local merchants.

?We?re always concerned about more chains coming to the market,?? said Troxell, whose association has been raising money to try to buy the lease to marketplace from General Growth. If that effort fails, Troxell said the association would want to talk to Simon or any future owner about increasing the merchants? ownership stake.

?The merchants here have survived almost everything over the years,?? she said. ?But we would like to negotiate a deal where they have a bit more security.??

Meanwhile, some industry specialists suggested that if successful, Simon would offer more stability for struggling mall properties. The company has deep experience in this market and owns or has an interest in 382 properties, comprising 261 million square feet of leasable space in North America, Europe, and Asia.

?They will bring more consistency and more profitability for the tenants,?? said Jon Hurst of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. Hurst said the firm?s increased negotiating power would be offset by the large supply of vacant space in malls and along local main streets.

?Right now, frankly, is a much better time for retailers to renegotiate leases and explore their options,?? he said. ?And for consumers, they will get good high-quality tenants (from Simon) and upgrades to these properties.??

Simon has been successful in luring European retailers to its properties, including the Northshore Mall in Peabody, which boasts Zara and standard-bearers such as Banana Republic. It also brought Nordstrom to the Northshore Mall and to the South Shore Plaza, where the department store is scheduled to open in March.

Casey Ross can be reached at cross@globe.com.
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General Growth Open to New Offers Besides Brookfield's


GENERAL GROWTH, BROOKFIELD ASSET MANAGEMENT, SIMON PROPERTY GROUP, MALL

CNBC.com
| 24 Feb 2010 | 03:37 PM ET

General Growth Properties finds Brookfield Asset Management's $2.6 billion offer a "far superior" deal to that of rival company Simon Properties, but the firm is still open to an even better offer, Thomas Nolan, General Growth's president and chief operating officer, told CNBC Wednesday.

"This company and this board of directors has a fiduciary responsibility to all of our stakeholders both our common shareholders and our creditors and we believe very much that this Brookfield proposal is far superior," said Nolan. "Because we are in bankruptcy this is a traditional stalking horse type of transaction. Brookfield has come forward to and we're compelled to look at better offers."
Brookfield's offer would enable General Growth to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and would not require an entire takeover of the company, Nolan said.
"They are making an investment in the vicinity of 30 percent of the company. It's going to allow us to continue go out and earn additional equity capital, we hope increasing prices allowing our existing shareholders to participate in the growth as we emerge," Nolan said.
Brookfield has offered General Growth a price of $15 a share to the common stake holders, Nolan said. Brookfield will invest $2.5 billion at $10.00 per share for new General Growth Properties common stock and up to $125 million at $5 a share for General Growth Opportunities common stock.
Unsecured creditors will receive par plus accrued interest.

The terms also require General Growth to spin off some of its assets. Certain assets that were "probably not the best situated in a REIT," are being separated from the REIT assets and made into a separate company, Nolan said.
Simon Property Group offered General Growth a deal valued at $10 billion which includes $9 per share to General Growth's shareholders and cash to its unsecured creditors.
Nolan said, however, if Simon Properties were to raise its offer it would reconsider the proposed deal with Brookfield.
"We are determined to get the best possible outcome for our stakeholders, the highest and best for our stakeholders and we will look at any offer," said Nolan.
 
Does Brookfield have any experience in the ownership and management of shopping centers? I see nothing on their website to suggest that they do. I wonder why they would want to enter a line of business unrelated to anything they do now.
 
Boston Globe - March 1, 2009
Google to map marketplace

By Jenn Abelson, Globe Staff | March 1, 2010

Faneuil Hall Marketplace has beat out shopping centers in Chicago and San Francisco to win Google?s Street View contest, making the historic plaza one of the first pedestrian malls to get the 360-degree mapping treatment.

The photographs will be taken later this year by Google?s Street View Trike, a three-wheel cycle that has cameras and sensors to gather images that are stitched together to make a panorama. The Street View Trike is used to make the images in places that are not accessible to motor vehicles.

Last year, Google solicited suggestions about where it should send the Street View Trike and narrowed them down to five categories: pedestrian malls, college campuses, theme parks and zoos, bike trails, and national landmarks.

Faneuil Hall, one of Boston?s top tourist attractions, led the online poll, with nearly 20,000 of about 40,000 votes in the pedestrian mall category, topping Chicago?s Navy Pier and San Francisco?s Pier 39.

?It?s great exposure for the marketplace,?? said Rebecca Stoddard, marketing manager at Faneuil Hall. ?It gives the many domestic and international travelers the opportunity to use Google technology to experience the marketplace before they get here.??

Faneuil Hall Marketplace is owned by the City of Boston, which leases out three of the four buildings - Quincy Market, North Market, and South Market - to General Growth Properties Inc. The city operates Faneuil Hall.

Daniel Ratner, a senior engineer at Google, said its operations team will gather images when the weather improves and provide the 360-degree imagery on Google Maps by year?s end. The trike has visited the Hub previously, to capture images at Boston University, made available to users in December.

Google is hoping to use the trike to visually map the Charles River, the Esplanade, Northeastern University, and the Boston Marathon route, Ratner said.

?These are some of the other places that are really cool and interesting, and we?re going to try to make part of future collections,?? Ratner said.

When Google first began Street View, it collected images only by using cars that cruised down streets. But it quickly became clear that many key areas, such as tourist attractions, could not be reached, said Luc Vincent, Google?s engineering director. The company then launched the Street View Trike.

Jenn Abelson can be reached at abelson@globe.com.
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Someone in the comments section thought this was a bad idea because it might make it easier for al Qaida to bomb the Marketplace. :rolleyes:
 
I don't know why they'd need the trike to map the Marathon route, which is entirely on streets.
 
Ron Newman said:
Does Brookfield have any experience in the ownership and management of shopping centers? I see nothing on their website to suggest that they do. I wonder why they would want to enter a line of business unrelated to anything they do now.
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If you look under the Brookfield Properties portion of there site (must be some type of company within a company) http://www.brookfieldproperties.com/ they do have a few mall/retail properties. Looks like in Boston they own 53 and 75 State Street.

From the article I posted it seems like Brookfield would only end up owning 30% so things would probably stay the same at Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market.
 
Boston Globe - September 19, 2010
Digging into city?s past
Faneuil Hall excavation paves way for visitors center

By Brian MacQuarrie, Globe Staff | September 19, 2010

At one of Boston?s hallowed historical sites, from a deep pit beside Faneuil Hall, heaps of dirt are being pitched to the surface with grunts and gusto.

?Have you found Jimmy Hoffa yet??? at least one passerby asks every day.

The wisecracks bring a chuckle from the diggers, but their quarry is much older than the long-vanished labor leader. Here, beside the north wall of the Cradle of Liberty, archeologists are inching their way, shovel by carefully placed shovel, toward a potential treasure trove of the city?s Colonial past.

?We?re right about where the town dock was,?? said Joel Dukes, a National Park Service archeologist, as he stood a few steps from the work. ?This is the heart of Boston right here.??

This side of Faneuil Hall, which faces TD Garden, has never been excavated by archeologists. Its proximity to what had been a busy shipping channel in Colonial times, as well as a warren of lodgings and taverns, has excited researchers who hope to uncover new history of one of America?s most history-conscious cities.

?This was, essentially, the port for Boston until Long Wharf was built?? in 1710, said Ellen Berkland, the city archeologist. ?It was a merchant area, sort of the hub of Boston during the 1600s.??

Although Faneuil Hall was not constructed until 1742, the building was located beside what had been Town Cove, a small extension of the harbor that was one of the earliest landing points for Boston shipping. Cargo was dropped and discarded here, trash was tossed into the water, and artifact-rich landfill eventually covered the cove to make room for the expanding city.

To archeologists, the site is a precious gift waiting to be unwrapped.

?There?s such an extensive history at Faneuil Hall,?? said Kim Parson, the project?s principal investigator from URS, an archeology firm based in Burlington, N.J. ?Not only for Boston, but for the entire country?s heritage.??

The excavation, which is being aided by the University of Massachusetts Boston, is required before the Boston National Historical Park visitors center can be relocated from nearby State Street to Faneuil Hall.

The 15-by-15-foot pit is being dug where a stairwell will lead to new Park Service offices and public restrooms in the basement.

The north wall of the building, which had served as a market and Town Meeting hall in the Revolutionary War era, was part of an expansion in 1806 by renowned Boston architect Charles Bulfinch, who also designed the State House.

Parson said the work, which began this month, is expected to be completed by Friday. Until then, the public is invited to watch the digging and screening of artifacts, and to ask questions of the archeologists.

?We want to find things we didn?t know,?? said Sean Hennessey, a Park Service spokesman in Boston. ?We think we?ve closed the book sometimes, but archeology is so vital.??

Berkland said the finds could provide an extraordinary glimpse of the city?s 17th-century history, for which only a relatively small number of artifacts have been found. The physical characteristics of the dig site ? sealed, saturated, and oxygen-free soil ? could yield amazing preservation, she said.

Wood, leather, ship timbers, barrels, egg shells, nuts, bugs, ceramics, and fragile textiles are all possible discoveries. ?This was just a natural dumping ground,?? Berkland said.

Parson said archeologists, who will dig 15 feet deep, might find evidence of the wharf from the old Town Cove channel, whose tidal waters once reached near present-day City Hall. ?And if we?re really lucky,?? she said, ?we?ll find a coin?? stamped with a date.

Artifacts will be washed and bagged at the city?s archeology laboratory. Some will be shipped to researchers who will study parasites, pollen, and other organic samples for time-capsule clues about everyday life in young, growing Boston.

Meanwhile, the ?al fresco?? form of archeology beside Faneuil Hall is attracting the curiosity of tourists and natives alike.

?I think it?s a great idea. No doubt, there are many artifacts here,?? said Joe Schmidt, who stopped to watch the work with Frances O?Brien, a fellow Jamaica Plain resident.

?Maybe we should throw something in there to keep them interested,?? O?Brien said with a smile.

?A rusty penny??? Schmidt suggested.

Such incentives will not be needed for excavators such as Michael Ligman, a UMass Boston graduate student from Williamsburg, Va., who sifted through piles of dirt thrown up from the pit.

?You can find something that can redefine history,?? Ligman said.

Dukes, the Park Service archeologist, agreed. As he stood behind a stretch of metal fence, focusing on the deepening pit, he relished his front-row perch on buried history.

?I love this,?? Dukes said. ?It?s a great job.??

MacQuarrie can be reached at macquarrie@globe.com.
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New National Park Vistor Center opening in Faneuil Hall -- Today and apparently it was all the idea of the much maligned "Da mayah Tommmy hisself"

img-Faneuil-hall-renovation.jpg


Park rangers to roam Hub hotspot
Faneuil Hall to offer guides, iPad app
By Donna Goodison
Thursday, May 24, 2012 - Updated 22 hours ago
http://bostonherald.com/business/te...hotspot_faneuil_hall_to_offer_guides_ipad_app
Visitors to Boston will be able to find information about the city and its historical sites right in the heart of tourist central starting tomorrow.

The National Park Service is opening a new visitors center in Faneuil Hall and debuting its first-in-the-nation iPad-based technology to guide tourists around the Hub.

The $7 million, two-level center replaces the much smaller location next to the Old Statehouse that closed Sunday after 32 years.

“It’s just going to be a more welcoming, light-filled and airy space,” spokesman Sean Hennessey told the Herald. “It’s going to provide a more fitting welcome to the city.”
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http://www.nps.gov/bost/faneuil-hall-vc.htm


Faneuil Hall Visitor Center
Faneuil Hall

The National Park Service visitor center at 15 State Street will close its doors on May 21, 2012 to be replaced by a new, state-of-the-art, visitor center opening in historic Faneuil Hall on Friday, May 25, 2012.

The new visitor center will be much more than an entryway into Boston National Historical Park and Boston African American National Historic Site. It will serve also as a gateway to all of the Massachusetts National Parks.

Open, light-filled and welcoming, visitors will find visual displays, printed materials, maps and park rangers on hand to provide expert guidance.

The new Faneuil Hall Visitor Center, integrating current technologies and design while remaining faithful to the traditional national park experience that travelers have come to know and love, will give visitors from all over the globe the information they need to make the most of their time in Boston and Massachusetts.
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Very busy and crowded when I dropped by this afternoon. It has most of the merchants who used to be there (yay Red Barn Coffee), plus the National Park Service visitor center that used to be a block away on State Street. I'm not sure the space is really big enough to handle the crowds it will attract.

It has a new stairway leading down to the basement level, which now contains restrooms and a small lecture hall.

One thing that didn't survive the reconstruction: the US Post Office counter that used to occupy the wall between the two west entrances.
 
It's exciting that it seems like they're trying to revert from the mall philosophy General Growth had. Not sure on the plan, but trying something new is fresh at least.
 
I am slightly concerned with how much potential ground floor space might get sucked up by the hotel lobby and I have no idea how they can fit all the necessary HVAC, plumbing, electrical and ADA requirements for a hotel in a space that old/small. But good luck to them if they can pull it off without doing any real damage to the building.
 
@ statler, I agree with you on the mechanicals, but on the lobby itself I think smaller is better. The Lenox has a fairly compact and multi-purpose lobby that works great.
 
bbfen said:
@ statler, I agree with you on the mechanicals, but on the lobby itself I think smaller is better. The Lenox has a fairly compact and multi-purpose lobby that works great.
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BBF -- There's a boutique hotel on Boylston that has quite a small footprint along the street

I presume this would be essentially a storefront lobby with a bigger commons space up at the attic level where the 25 to 50 rooms might be located -- perhaps pods

Might be perfect for the hard-core tourist who wants to be in the midst of it all and only needs a small pad or pod to crash-into after a hard-day touristing
 
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