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The Bulfinch Companies

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Bulfinch Companies Inc.
Company typePrivate
IndustryReal Estate
Founded1936
FounderSamuel W. Poorvu
HeadquartersBoston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Key people
Eric Schlager, CEO, Robert Schlager, President, S. Lawrence Schlager, Chairman Emeritus
ProductsProperty Management, Property developer
Websitebulfinch.com

The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. is an American real estate firm headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

History

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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

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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

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Osborn Triangle

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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References

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  1. ^ "Samuel W. Poorvu Professional Profile". New England Real Estate Journal. 1967. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  2. ^ 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.
  3. ^ 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.
  4. ^ "Who We Are". The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  5. ^ "Previous Version of Bulfinch Companies Website-Biographies of Executives". The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  6. ^ "NAIOP Selects The Bulfinch Companies to Receive Distinguished Real Estate Award". National Association of Industrial & Office Properties. 2007-07-09. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  7. ^ "Cambridge GoGreen Awards" (PDF). City of Cambridge, Office of the Mayor. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  8. ^ "Agenda". Cambridge City Council. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
  9. ^ "U.S. Green Building Council: The Bulfinch Companies, Inc". U.S. Green Building Council.
  10. ^ Jim Cronin (July 16, 2012). "Hot Property". Banker & Tradesman.
  11. ^ "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]
  12. ^ "2011 GoGreen Awards Ceremony May 26". City of Cambridge. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
  13. ^ Logan, Tim (May 17, 2019). "MIT-Owned Lab Buildings Sold for Reported 1.1 Billion". Boston Globe.
  14. ^ Carlock, Catherine (May 17, 2019). "MIT Sells Kendall Square Office Lab Complex for 1.1B". Boston Business Journal.
  15. ^ "10 Brookline Place". Bldup.
  16. ^ "10 Brookline Place". Bulfinch.
  17. ^ Grillo, Thomas (July 23, 2012). "Bulfinch acquires Atrium Mall for $46M". American City Business Journals.
  18. ^ Reidy, Chris (July 23, 2012). "Atrium Mall in Chestnut Hill purchased by Bulfinch Cos". The Boston Globe.
  19. ^ Bartlett, Jessica (June 13, 2017). "Dana-Farber to open a fifth site in Chestnut Hill". American City Business Journals.
  20. ^ "New Post Office Now Under Construction". The Harvard Crimson. October 20, 1953. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  21. ^ "Square Post Office To Close Next Year for Renovations". The Harvard Crimson. September 19, 2000. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  22. ^ "B.B. Chemical Company, Corporate headquarters and research facility". Shepley Bulfinch.
  23. ^ "B and B Chemical Company". U.S. Department of the Interior, National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  24. ^ "784 Memorial Drive". The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. Retrieved 2019-09-19.
  25. ^ Sandra M. Chung (October 23, 2001). "Polaroid Goes Bankrupt; Plans to Sell Existing Assets". The Tech, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  26. ^ "University IT Upgrades to New Office". The Harvard Crimson, Inc. Retrieved 2019-09-19.
  27. ^ "Cambridge Discovery Park". Massachusetts Biotechnology Council.
  28. ^ "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.
  29. ^ "Getting Around the CFA". Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  30. ^ "Siemens leases Cambridge office space". The Boston Globe. October 23, 2008. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  31. ^ "Scout Realty is making buying and selling homes easier". Retrieved 16 June 2021.
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