Simmons University Living and Learning Center | 300 Fenway | Longwood

Looking at Simmons' Master Plan linked to above what surprises me is that Simmons has excess space on its academic campus. Looking at the diagrams there are large sections of two buildings that are leased to Children's' Hospital and Brigham and Wonen's Hospital. I assume that this is used as administrative space by those hospitals.

So Simmons will be able to demolish a major academic building (Park Science Center) and relocate those departments to other existing academic buildings. Simmons had overbuilt their academic campus!
 
The Globe article appears unclear as to Simmons' future role on the res campus. Will they be landlords, or will they sell it? If they stay dorms (private, owned by Scape, for example) the change is minor. If the res campus is actually redeveloped, that's a real boon.
 
The Globe article appears unclear as to Simmons' future role on the res campus. Will they be landlords, or will they sell it? If they stay dorms (private, owned by Scape, for example) the change is minor. If the res campus is actually redeveloped, that's a real boon.

Those Simmons dorms are old fashioned traditional dorms that are out of favor with students. Simmons will give the developer a land lease like Emanuel did with Merck . I picture high rises.
 
Looking at Simmons' Master Plan linked to above what surprises me is that Simmons has excess space on its academic campus. Looking at the diagrams there are large sections of two buildings that are leased to Children's' Hospital and Brigham and Wonen's Hospital. I assume that this is used as administrative space by those hospitals.

So Simmons will be able to demolish a major academic building (Park Science Center) and relocate those departments to other existing academic buildings. Simmons had overbuilt their academic campus!

There is a net lose of square feet after all is said and done, even with increasing the number of beds by about eight percent. The square footage lost with demolition of the science building is not fully made up after reconfiguring existing buildings and ending the leasing to the hospitals.

Most of the parking spaces at Simmons are leased out to the hospitals.

I didn't find data in the IMP on how many of the 600 undergraduates not living on campus are commuting students, whose family resides in Greater Boston, and how many are 'out-of-state' and living off campus. Simmons does not provide graduate school housing, and graduate school enrollment is increasing sharply.

So what next?

Simmons would appear to be in no rush, as their on-line program is a huge cash cow. Without that, the college would be in dire straits. With it, Simmons has a healthy operating surplus.

A.) Sell the residential campus to one or more of the hospitals.

B.) As Emmanuel did, sell it to a pharma company.

c.) Sell to Boston U, to add to its Wheelock campus.

My guess is A., or B. Simmons wants to continue playing nice to the hospitals because of the nursing and STEM programs
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"c.) Sell to Boston U, to add to its Wheelock campus."

My prediction is that BU will sell or land lease all or most of the Wheelock campus within the next 10 year.

Northeastern certainly needs more housing but the Simmons res campus is too far away.
 
Does anybody know the data of how much housing is consumed by Students throughout the city of Boston? Comm Ave and Allston are all students. There is no community at all over there.

Between these 3 market segments (1) Luxury, (2) Students, (3) Section 8 residents what is left for market demographics in the city of Boston. I would love to know how much housing is consumed by actual real data.
 
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"c.) Sell to Boston U, to add to its Wheelock campus."

My prediction is that BU will sell or land lease all or most of the Wheelock campus within the next 10 year.

Northeastern certainly needs more housing but the Simmons res campus is too far away.

Not a chance. BU didn’t engage in a merger simply to sell of the only worthwhile asset.
 
Does anybody know the data of how much housing is consumed by Students throughout the city of Boston? Comm Ave and Allston are all students. There is no community at all over there.

Between these 3 market segments (1) Luxury, (2) Students, (3) Section 8 residents what is left for market demographics in the city of Boston. I would love to know how much housing is consumed by actual real data.

https://www.boston.gov/departments/neighborhood-development/housing-changing-city-boston-2030

I've seen this give a ballpark figure while establishing its goals, maybe check the original plan or the revised plan. Housing more students in dorms is part of the goals.
 
I looked at Simmons University's (no longer a college) long-term debt. It stands at about $150 million, an amount which surprised me. I assume much of that debt was incurred in the renovation of the residence dorms Simmons plans to vacate.

Because of the debt, I think now they will sell or lease the residential campus sooner rather than later.
 
I looked at Simmons University's (no longer a college) long-term debt. It stands at about $150 million, an amount which surprised me. I assume much of that debt was incurred in the renovation of the residence dorms Simmons plans to vacate.

Because of the debt, I think now they will sell or lease the residential campus sooner rather than later.

Simmons has built two new academic buildings in the past decade. Yet they lease out some academic space to the nearby hospitals.
 
Not a chance. BU didn’t engage in a merger simply to sell of the only worthwhile asset.

That worthwhile asset will fetch a LOT of money for BU in Boston's real estate market. That plus the Wheelock endowment were the reasons for the merger.
 
Between these 3 market segments (1) Luxury, (2) Students, (3) Section 8 residents what is left for market demographics in the city of Boston. I would love to know how much housing is consumed by actual real data.

Luxury is a marketing term for market rate. What do you want to do, build new housing and call it "meh" "just good enough" - anywhere in the country, that's what they call new housing.

Simmons selling to a Pharma would be interesting. I wonder if anyone is looking.
 
That worthwhile asset will fetch a LOT of money for BU in Boston's real estate market. That plus the Wheelock endowment were the reasons for the merger.

BU has no intentions to sell off Wheelock and the endowment wasn’t much at the end.
 
Well there is always Harvard, which is a premiere land-banker. The School of Public health has a residence hall at 203-207 Park Drive, which is an older building, and offices at Landmark.
 
How many Simmons students are living ON campus? I'm getting sick of the city letting the universities run wild in this city. How much of a factor are the schools to not having affordable housing in this city? Probably very high. Make them have enough housing for all their kids before they start engaging in money grabs.

Probably some impact, but dorms aren't exactly cheaper for the students. Many students could get better rates in the private market.
 
Time will tell.

Not sure what you’re really getting at here, unless you have some inside knowledge that you’re not sharing (which is unlikely). BU just spent millions updating the Fenway campus and relocating services there for several programs. The merger also opened up hundreds of new campus dorms to further relieve the off campus housing crunch in Audubon Circle and Allston.

If you were to say that BU is selling off holdings in Kenmore Square then well, you’d be on to something (but that’s not what you’re saying).
 

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