It was a shock when the 40 Thorndike tower in East Cambridge opened empty in August 2024 after a decade of development – maybe “the first major office project in the Boston area to deliver vacant,” as the Boston Business Journal noted.
The phenomenon has become familiar to USQ, master developer of a 20-acre, $2 billion project in Union Square, where there is also a lack of tenants seeking lab space. It’s a second all but frozen sector across Cambridge and Somerville, where life sciences appeared to jump when Cambridge’s Kendall Square filled beyond capacity.
A 195,000-square-foot commercial Union Square lab building called 10 Prospect remains empty, USQ told the Somerville Redevelopment Authority board on Wednesday.
“We’re working on getting it leased up. It’s a very challenging market,” said Greg Karczewski, president of the developer. “It’s a very pro-tenant market right now and supercompetitive. Particularly locations like Watertown, Kendall Square and The Seaport are attracting a lot of the little bit of tenant demand that’s out there.”
There’s an estimated 14 million to 15 million square feet of supply in the market, Karczewski said, in a sector that’s also suffering “friction, if you will,” from the federal government – a reference to policies under president Donald Trump that have cut billions of dollars in research grants and support for vaccines.
The developer has added amenities, including giving Ebi Sushi a long-term lease so it can reopen in late spring in the 10 Prospect ground floor, relocated from its month-to-month uncertainty nearby at 290 Somerville Ave.
And USQ has gotten creative in its efforts to woo tenants, broadening the target sector from purely life sciences into artificial intelligence, robotics, climate tech and other hybrid uses. All might be able to use elements of the building’s outfitting, which was done with life sciences in mind. “It’s been a significant investment in some pretty high-end infrastructure to support that use,” Karczewski said. “We’re trying to find the balance between that investment and trying to meet the market where it’s at.”
USQ is touring as many prospective tenants as it can, Karczewski said. “Rather than just working through the brokerage community, we’ve also over the last year really made a concerted effort to reach out to the innovation ecosystem and connect them to Union Square, both individually and by hosting a number of events.” More than 1,500 people across AI, life sciences, robotics and other sectors have been introduced to the building and Union Square through nearly 30 hosted events, he said.
“Open-mindedness” on order
Completion of the so-called D2 block with its 10-50 Prospect St. commercial building and 20-50 Prospect St. residential structure – a total 600,000 square feet – reflects a quarter of the Union Square master plan. Another lab and office location is fully permitted and shovel-ready but “waiting for commercial leasing conditions to improve so we could start construction,” Karczewski said, and USQ is working on acquiring land for a 50-home all-affordable project. “We made a commitment to the community that we wouldn’t start the next residential project within the overall master plan until we started construction on the second commercial project.”
Redevelopment Authority member Christine Stone wondered about changing the order.
Karczewski had already agreed the situation called for “open-mindedness,” and though he felt the office market in Boston was starting to heal and saw “cautious optimism on the lab side,” he said USQ would welcome a conversation if there was broad support for a change to residential within the context of the master plan. “Exploring some of the other residential projects that are part of the master plan might make some sense,” especially considering Stone’s reminder that employees want to live close to their employers.
USQ saw market support for moving forward with a hotel sooner rather than later, which it feels would attract more tenants to the square and contribute to its role as “Somerville’s downtown,” Karczewski said. The hotel is now scheduled to come along after the affordable housing is built.
Hamilton rezoning is on the radar
But what bothered Karczewski was seeing The Hamilton Co. filing Feb. 10 for a zoning change at its One Union Square land within the district, to residential from commercial – potentially 180 homes, 20 percent of them held as affordable, in two six-story buildings at Somerville Avenue and Prospect Street. “Hamilton acquired the parcels after the urban revitalization plan and framework was in place,” he said. “If there was development to occur outside that coordinated development framework, it would risk undermining the goals of the master plan.”
The Union Square Neighborhood Council does not have a public position on the Hamilton zoning submission, but it is a likely topic at the March 16 meeting, co-chair Emily Doran said Thursday.
“We obviously don’t want to see buildings vacant,” Doran said.
At the Redevelopment Authority, there was agreement between chair Philip Ercolini and Stone that – considering the work that went into the master zoning a dozen years ago – the change should be discussed. Stone called for it to be added to a future SRA agenda.