South Station Tower | South Station Air Rights | Downtown

[BeyondRevenue]

"If it's for ventilation, it seems like there could be a better way to provide that. "

Sure. Full electrification.

 

[Suffolk 83]

Really showing in southie now: (sry bad cell pix)

 

[Dr. Rosen Rosen]

Without getting into details for obvious reasons, it was really cool to look out my window this weekend and see the top of the core for the first time. Cannot wait to have a permanent view of this as it goes up over the next year or so.

Gotta love how our little community spans the human experience here in Boston.

 

[bip05]

 

[Charlie_mta]

Gotta love how our little community spans the human experience here in Boston.

Yep, I do appreciate this website. People are civil and respectful on here, which is hugely important.

 

[Suffolk 83]

 

[AndreyD]

 

[BosDevelop]

Can they at least power wash that disgusting post office building if they are never going to move?

 

[chrisbrat]

 

[DBM]

Can they at least power wash that disgusting post office building if they are never going to move?

Excellent suggestion, and the timing is surely fortuitous: I cannot foresee anything... really, anything... at the present moment that would inhibit the federal government from showering its subordinates at the Boston USPS Postal Annex with the necessary resources--monetary and otherwise--to make that facade sparkle!

 

[Poolio]

 

[JohnJZ]

A few shots from the office on Congress Street and the walk over to the train on May 17th.

 

[lynqueezy]

 

[kz1000ps]

Yesterday at the most traffic-y time of day

 

[Pheldy34]

Yesterday at the most traffic-y time of day

Make sure to not go too fast! Speed limit 45!

 

[Java King]

View attachment 38034

This will be a nice clear shot of the tower on Essex Street when it's completed. I always come down this street and then turn right into the 93 tunnel going south.

 

[Justbuildit]

Floorplate visible from across the greenway. Bet this accelerates once they get past the knots near the ground.

 

[stick n move]

Imagine waiting 20 years to build this tower and then once you finally start the commercial real estate market crashes. If this had waited just a bit longer it would have had a good chance of being put on hold...again. Theyre very lucky that they redesigned it to have residential in the top half, because now they only need to rent half the amount of office space as the previous version. This also gives me confidence theyre going to complete it and not knock the height down seeing that the valuable condos are in the top half and the office portion is partly constructed.

 

[Justbuildit]

Point taken, absolutely, but the one thing this tower has going for it is the recent demand for new-build Class A space. Not sure if there's still pent up demand or if there will be in 2-3 years, but I'd be much more worried if I were a middling landlord in the central business district.

The squeeze is not being felt equally. Newer, Class A towers — think One Congress and One Post Office Square — are still drawing blue-chip tenants, while older Class B and C space increasingly looks less attractive. Of the 560,000 square feet in leases signed in Boston’s central business district in the first quarter, nearly 95 percent were in Class A buildings, according to research from real estate firm CBRE.

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/04/15/business/remote-work-takes-hold-bostons-office-market-starts-wobble/?p1=BGSearch_Overlay_Results

I'm a little more worried about the residences, as I've heard both Winthrop and St Regis aren't doing a great job moving units, and that South Station Tower is likely to be even more expensive on a per sf basis. It's going to be an interesting 6-8 quarters...

 

[bigpicture7]

Imagine waiting 20 years to build this tower and then once you finally start the commercial real estate market crashes. If this had waited just a bit longer it would have had a good chance of being put on hold...again. Theyre very lucky that they redesigned it to have residential in the top half, because now they only need to rent half the amount of office space as the previous version. This also gives me confidence theyre going to complete it and not knock the height down seeing that the valuable condos are in the top half and the office portion is partly constructed.

A lot of commercial properties have reason to be concerned and be thinking about pivots, but this one, I believe, has a lot going for it even in these times. Yes, a big part of it is what you mentioned about the residential component at height - which is further strengthened by having a big brand name sign on (Ritz) - helps this building's case. But even for the office component, I have read in multiple places - and just saw again in a recent survey report - that proximity to transit is emerging as the #1 differentiator for office leasing (as sought by prospective tenants):

CBRE Survey: Greater Clarity on Office Attendance Prompts More Companies to Revamp Office Portfolios - Boston Real Estate Times

Boston – Companies are more proactive about office attendance than last year: 65% say they’re requiring in-office work at least some of the time, according to a new survey by […]

bostonrealestatetimes.com

The fact that it's Class A space, directly atop a major transit hub, with nicely configurable floor plans should make the office part viable. I think one of the biggest changes they'll see is probably leasing individual floors to smaller tenants rather than one giant anchor tenant. But I think this office space will move since it is among the best opportunities in the entire city.