Work Continues on Tallest Office Building in Boston in 25 Years

As reported by Boston City Properties during the summer, ground was officially broken on One Congress, the soaring new office tower that is expected to add hundreds of thousands of square feet of desperately needed office space to the city’s real estate market. With vacancy rates for such space in the city hovering at around 7.9 percent – the lowest since early 2001 – it is safe to say that more space is direly needed. How much will the completion of One Congress help, though? Read on to learn more about the situation thus far and what is expected in the future.

Ground on the new project was officially broken on Thursday, June 20. The event enjoyed a great deal of fanfare given that the 600-foot-tall tower would be the tallest one to be built in Boston in about 25 years. In fact, Mayor Martin J. Walsh was in attendance along with many other dignitaries. Not surprisingly, representatives from State Street Corp., which will serve as the anchor tenant for the building, were at the groundbreaking too. That company’s headquarters had been located at One Lincoln since 2005. Upon completion of the building, however, State Street Corp. will lease 510,000 square feet of space at One Congress – and its 2,500 employees will relocate there too.

The tower at One Congress has enjoyed a great deal of attention not just for its height. It is part of a much larger project that is transforming the former Government Center Garage. The former building was a massive concrete behemoth that residents long complained about for the way in which it blocked neighborhoods from one another. Part of the original garage will remain, but One Congress will be joined by a 480-foot-tall apartment tower. There are also plans for the addition of several smaller buildings on the plaza where the Haymarket bus station is now located.

Of course, One Congress is just one of many such projects that are expected to have a major impact on the state of office space in the city of Boston. With such space at such a premium, it isn’t surprising that construction for new buildings has been booming. For example, a new office tower is being constructed atop North Station. The 31-story-tall building is being leased primarily by Verizon. New towers that are being built in Kendall Square in Cambridge already have tenants in Google and Akamai. MIT is also constructing two new office buildings in the same area.

Currently, at least 6 million square feet of office space is under development and construction in downtown Boston and East Cambridge. Developers hope for One Congress to be fully leased, or at spec, by the time that it opens in the year 2022. Although State Street Corp. has leased more than have of the space, plenty more of it remains – and it will be interesting to see which tenants are brought into the fold.

If you are looking for a place to locate your business in the city of Boston, now is a great time to consider Class A space downtown. In addition to the projects mentioned above, Winthrop Center is also under construction at the moment. All told, the $1.3-billion project will add more than 750,000 square feet of workspace, and its upper half will feature luxury condos. Boston City Properties continues to stay on top of the latest developments concerning these and other commercial real estate developments, and we’re here to help when you need it. Give us a call today for more information.