The Bulfinch Companies
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Real Estate |
| Founded | 1936 |
| Founder | Samuel W. Poorvu |
| Headquarters | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Key people | Eric Schlager, CEO, Robert Schlager, President, S. Lawrence Schlager, Chairman Emeritus |
| Products | Property Management, Property developer |
| Website | bulfinch |
The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. is an American real estate firm headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
History
[edit]Bulfinch was founded in 1936 by Samuel W. Poorvu, a Lithuanian immigrant who began his career as a bricklayer, and soon started a small company in Boston building and developing Post Offices. Poorvu [1] was dubbed "The Post Office King of America" by the Wall Street Journal for his role in developing over 100 postal facilities nationwide for the United States Postal Service.[2]
Bulfinch is owned and has been continuously operated by the Schlager family.[3] Since inception, Bulfinch has "developed, acquired, and re-positioned in excess of $4 billion in commercial real estate assets."[4] Bulfinch owns and/or operates nearly 4 million square feet of property, primarily centered in New England. Bulfinch is currently in its third generation of management.[5]
Awards
[edit]Bulfinch was awarded the "Distinguished Real Estate Award" by the National Association of Industrial & Office Properties in 2007.[6] Bullfinch has also been awarded commendations by the Mayor of Cambridge, Massachusetts.[7] The City of Cambridge, Massachusetts awarded Bulfinch the Certificate of Preservation Merit.[8] Bullfinch received LEED Gold Certifications by the USGBC.[9]
Several Bulfinch properties have earned the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star certification. Banker & Tradesman has identified several Bulfinch sites as "Hot Properties".[10] The American Council of Engineering awarded Bulfinch a silver award for Cambridge Discovery Park in 2008.[11] Bulfinch received recognition at the 2011 GoGreen Awards for "their work in reducing storm water runoff and improving water quality".[12]
Acquisitions
[edit]Osborn Triangle
[edit]Located adjacent to MIT's campus in Kendall Square, Bulfinch, in partnership with MIT and Harrison Street Real Estate, acquired three buildings: 610 Main Street North, 700 Main Street and 1 Portland Street "for 1.1 Billion Dollars".[13] The three properties feature 677,000 square feet of lab, office and retail space, with a parking garage that includes 650 spaces.[14] Key tenants include Pfizer, Novartis, Lab Central as well as restaurants Sulmona, Café Luna Revela, and Boston Burger.
10 Brookline Place
[edit]Bulfinch acquired 10 Brookline Place in 2018 for 153 million dollars.[15] The property consists of six floors with a total of 173,000 square feet of office space with 240 parking spaces available on 1.7 acres of land.[16]
Lifetime Center
[edit]In July 2012, Bulfinch acquired the 300,000 square foot Atrium Mall in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts from Simon Property Group, with plans to re-position it as a mixed-use medical office property, partially demolishing it, and then rebuilding and renovating it.[17][18] The Lifetime Center reopened in Fall 2017 with Lifetime Fitness and Dana–Farber Cancer Institute as anchor stores.[19]
The Harvard Square Post Office
[edit]Samuel Poorvu originally developed the Harvard Square United States Post Office located in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1954.[20] This facility was redeveloped in 2000 by Bulfinch.[21]
The Polaroid Building
[edit]The building was the "first modern industrial structure in Cambridge, Massachusetts" and was designed by Shepley Bulfinch in 1938 for B B Chemical Company.[22] The building was acquired by Polaroid Corporation and was used as their corporate headquarters for some time. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1982.[23] Bulfinch acquired the property in 2000.[24][25] The Information Technology group of Harvard University (HUIT) is currently the sole tenant.[26]
Cambridge Discovery Park
[edit]Cambridge Discovery Park is located on the site of the former Arthur D. Little Company headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is an 820,000 SF master-planned development with multiple LEED certified buildings.[27] It is home to Forrester Research world headquarters and the Harvard-Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.[28][29] Siemens AG also leases space in the property.[30][31]
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ "Samuel W. Poorvu Professional Profile". New England Real Estate Journal. 1967. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ LM KOHLMEIER (June 16, 1960). "Postal Plums: More Investors Pick Up High Yields by Building, Leasing Post Offices". The Wall Street Journal. ProQuest 132591413. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
- ^ Julie Carrick Dalton (July 4, 1999). "Family affair Bulfinch Cos., now in its 3d generation of family ownership, has assets of $250 million and manages 3 million square feet". The Boston Globe. Real Estate. p. J.1. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
- ^ "Who We Are". The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
- ^ "Previous Version of Bulfinch Companies Website-Biographies of Executives". The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "NAIOP Selects The Bulfinch Companies to Receive Distinguished Real Estate Award". National Association of Industrial & Office Properties. 2007-07-09. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "Cambridge GoGreen Awards" (PDF). City of Cambridge, Office of the Mayor. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "Agenda". Cambridge City Council. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
- ^ "U.S. Green Building Council: The Bulfinch Companies, Inc". U.S. Green Building Council.
- ^ Jim Cronin (July 16, 2012). "Hot Property". Banker & Tradesman.
- ^ "Press Release: Bulfinch Wins Silver Award at the ACEC/MA Gala" (PDF). The Bulfinch Companies Inc. April 28, 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2012.[dead link]
- ^ "2011 GoGreen Awards Ceremony May 26". City of Cambridge. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
- ^ Logan, Tim (May 17, 2019). "MIT-Owned Lab Buildings Sold for Reported 1.1 Billion". Boston Globe.
- ^ Carlock, Catherine (May 17, 2019). "MIT Sells Kendall Square Office Lab Complex for 1.1B". Boston Business Journal.
- ^ "10 Brookline Place". Bldup.
- ^ "10 Brookline Place". Bulfinch.
- ^ Grillo, Thomas (July 23, 2012). "Bulfinch acquires Atrium Mall for $46M". American City Business Journals.
- ^ Reidy, Chris (July 23, 2012). "Atrium Mall in Chestnut Hill purchased by Bulfinch Cos". The Boston Globe.
- ^ Bartlett, Jessica (June 13, 2017). "Dana-Farber to open a fifth site in Chestnut Hill". American City Business Journals.
- ^ "New Post Office Now Under Construction". The Harvard Crimson. October 20, 1953. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "Square Post Office To Close Next Year for Renovations". The Harvard Crimson. September 19, 2000. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "B.B. Chemical Company, Corporate headquarters and research facility". Shepley Bulfinch.
- ^ "B and B Chemical Company". U.S. Department of the Interior, National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "784 Memorial Drive". The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. Retrieved 2019-09-19.
- ^ Sandra M. Chung (October 23, 2001). "Polaroid Goes Bankrupt; Plans to Sell Existing Assets". The Tech, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "University IT Upgrades to New Office". The Harvard Crimson, Inc. Retrieved 2019-09-19.
- ^ "Cambridge Discovery Park". Massachusetts Biotechnology Council.
- ^ "Bulfinch's 820,000 s/f Cambridge Discovery Park receives GoGreen Award for Stormwater Management". New England Real Estate Journal. June 24, 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "Getting Around the CFA". Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "Siemens leases Cambridge office space". The Boston Globe. October 23, 2008. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "Scout Realty is making buying and selling homes easier". Retrieved 16 June 2021.