Billerica, MA The RAM Companies completed the acquisition of 261 and 267 Boston Rd., a 97,403 s/f property known as Corporate Place and located off Rte. 3. The property, purchased for $8.1 million, is home to a New England Rehabilitation outpatient clinic as well as a primary care facility of Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, among others. The acquisition bolsters RAM’s portfolio of high-quality, income-producing commercial and industrial properties along the Northwest Expressway corridor outside Boston.
“We have gained a strong foothold in and around the Merrimack Valley in Greater Boston by sticking to a strategy of identifying and acquiring assets with healthy long-term investment potential,” said Brian Gagne, executive vice president of acquisitions and development for The RAM Cos. “With its solid tenants and ideal location, 261 and 267 Boston Road fit the bill. We couldn’t be more pleased to add such a strong property.”
Built in 1985 and 1986, the property is comprised of two class B multi-tenant flex/R&D buildings (61,795 s/f and 35,608 s/f) on 13.2 acres.
Corporate Place is located within the Rte. 3 North submarket. Accessed from Treble Cove Rd. (Exit 28) off of Rte. 3, 261 and 267 Boston Rd. are 23 miles north of Boston and one mile from Route 3.
The property also offers regional access via I-495, just five miles away from the major interstate. Approximate drive time from downtown Boston is under 35 minutes via Route 3 and I-93.
RAM is planning a range of improvements to the property, Gagne said, including repointing, sealing and painting the brick, complete re-landscaping and paving as well as installing new energy-efficient lighting and new signage.
Presently, the property is 85% occupied. Major tenants include:
• Lahey Health Primary Care, Billerica – Part of the Lahey Hospital & Medical Center network, offering top-quality primary care while having access to Lahey’s world-renowned medical centers and physicians in Burlington, Lexington and Peabody. Founded in 1923, Lahey Hospital & Medical Center is a physician-led, nonprofit group practice affiliated with Tufts University School of Medicine.
• New England Rehabilitation Hospital, Billerica – An affiliate of HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital specializing in rehabilitation and physical therapy outpatient services. HealthSouth operates in 33 states and in Puerto Rico.
• SI2 Technologies – SI2 Technologies, Inc. (SI2) designs, develops and manufactures antennas, arrays and absorber systems for military air, land, sea and space applications. SI2 creates rapid, innovative and cost-effective solutions to the complex and ever-changing battlefield problems facing today’s warfighters.
The RAM Companies has pioneered office, retail and residential property development in New England, South Florida and Europe for more than 40 years. Founder Howard Goldenfarb is credited with igniting the redevelopment of Portland, Maine’s Old Port district in the 1970s with the purchase and redevelopment of more than 20 properties, including many historic buildings.
Led by Goldenfarb, RAM also has developed a number of other building projects noted as “firsts” in Maine and elsewhere. Those projects include The Maine Outlet in Kittery, the first multi-tenant, purpose-built outlet mall in New England; Citicorp Park in South Portland, Maine’s first suburban office park; Foreside Common in Falmouth, the region’s first luxury waterfront condominium project; and RiverPlace in South Portland, the first waterfront luxury apartment complex in southern Maine. RAM also was a pioneer in European (England and Belgium) and Middle East (Israel) outlet mall development.
RAM has focused in recent years on the acquisition of income-producing properties in New England and South Florida, as well as the redevelopment of luxury single family homes through its affiliate, Mile Marker Investments, based in Miami.