Related Beal and Jamestown lease over 225,000 s/f at Innovation and Design Building in last year

Boston, MA According to Related Beal and Jamestown, the joint venture owners of the Innovation and Design Building (IDB) in the Seaport, they have completed more than 225,000 s/f of leasing activity at the property over the past year. The IDB – a 1.4 million s/f mixed-use campus that is home to the Boston Design Center (BDC) as well as a diverse mix of office, technology, and life science tenants – has seen sustained, broad-based growth and demand across all tenant categories, culminating in the renewal of Autodesk, a global design and engineering software company, as one of the building’s anchor tenants.

“What makes the IDB special is the ecosystem – world-class technology companies, cutting-edge life science firms, and the design industry’s most celebrated showrooms all under one roof, each making the building more dynamic for everyone else,” said Greg McQuade, senior vice president and northeast regional market leader of asset management at Jamestown. “At 1.4 million s/f, this campus operates at a scale where that cross-disciplinary energy is genuinely palpable – and time and again, it’s what our tenants point to when they talk about why they stay.”

 AutoDesk, a 3D design, engineering, and entertainment software and technology company that has maintained a significant presence at the IDB for years, has renewed its lease for approximately 72,000 s/f, reaffirming its commitment to the building as a hub for its Boston operations. The renewal signals continued strength in the Seaport campus from one of the world’s leading technology companies.

Reinforcing the momentum is an expansion by Ratio Therapeutics, a clinical-stage company developing best-in-class radiopharmaceuticals for cancer patients, which has grown its footprint within the IDB by approximately 17,000 s/f, and now occupies 36,000 s/f at the building. The expansion speaks to the evolution of the building as a destination not just for companies entering the campus, but for those scaling within it.

“Boston has been an ideal place to build and grow Ratio, and expanding within the Innovation and Design Building is an important next step for us,” said Marc Becker, chief financial officer and chief operating officer of Ratio. “The Seaport offers access to exceptional scientific talent, strong infrastructure, and a vibrant innovation community that gives our team the space, resources, and momentum to advance our pipeline of next-generation radiopharmaceutical therapies for cancer patients here in Boston.”

Complementing the Autodesk renewal and Ratio Therapeutics expansion, two additional anchor tenants have recommitted to the IDB. America’s Test Kitchen, the celebrated culinary media company behind the country’s most trusted cooking brands, renewed its lease for approximately 53,000 s/f. Award-winning architecture and interior design firm Elkus Manfredi Architects, a firm whose own design legacy is woven into the building itself, renewed for approximately 47,000 s/f.

“The Eastern Seaport and the Innovation and Design Building continue to attract and retain high-quality tenants with the premier offerings companies have come to expect. The lease agreements and renewals at the IDB reflect the strength of the building’s ecosystem and the continued partnership between Related Beal and Jamestown,” said Erin Orpik, Vice President of Commercial Assets at Related Beal. “The IDB offers the creative, flexible spaces tenants need to drive innovation, and we are proud to finalize these deals and support their ongoing success.”

Within the IDB, the Boston Design Center – New England’s premier trade resource for the design industry – has seen its own wave of showroom renewals, further affirming the BDC’s standing as the region’s go-to destination for design professionals. Kravet – one of the design world’s most storied fabric and furnishings houses – renewed for approximately 16,000 s/f, the largest of the showroom renewals. Kravet is joined by Cowtan & Tout (~5,000 s/f), Scavolini (~3,300 s/f), Quadrille (~1,800 s/f), and Ferrell Mittman, (~1,800 s/f) and Osborne & Little (~2900s/f) each renewing their place within the BDC’s curated showroom collection.

The Innovation and Design Building is a 1.4 million s/f mixed-use complex located at 21 Drydock Avenue in Boston’s Seaport neighborhood, owned by a joint venture of Related Beal and Jamestown. Constructed in 1918 and originally serving as a waterside storehouse for the South Boston Army Base, the eight-story building today houses a dynamic mix of technology companies, architecture and creative studios, life science and research firms, and the Boston Design Center – New England’s premier resource for design professionals, featuring over 1,200 luxury product lines across approximately 40 showrooms.