The Davis Cos. Tops Off Greater Boston Lab Project

101 Smith Place. Rendering courtesy of The Davis Cos.

The Davis Cos., in partnership with Invesco Real Estate, has topped off the second phase of The Quad, a 520,000-square-foot, 9.8-acre life science campus in Cambridge, Mass. The upcoming 101 Smith Place is a 161,616-square-foot, Class A lab development, one of the four redeveloped buildings within the master-planned community.

The project is slated for delivery in the fourth quarter of this year. According to CommercialEdge information, the four-story 101 Smith Place is subject to a $118.8 million Wells Fargo Bank loan, set to mature in 2024.

The purpose-built life science building is certified to the LEED Gold level and will feature 15- to 18-foot floor-to-floor heights, a fitness center, surface and below-grade parking, as well as bike stations and indoor bike storage. Additionally, the development is set to include a mechanical penthouse with a central chiller and hot water plant with AHU and lab exhaust.

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At full build-out, the property will also incorporate move-in ready spec suites and access to various campus amenities located in the West Cambridge neighborhood, including Kendall Kitchen, newly installed bike lanes, outdoor patios and dedicated shuttle services to Alewife Station.

Boston life science market shows continued growth

Ginko Bioworks, Civetta Therapeutics, Invaio Sciences, Hyperion and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd are among the tenants at The Quad. CBRE Executive Vice President Eric Smith, Vice President McKenna Teague, along with Senior Associate Tess Chandler will be overseeing leasing at 101 Smith Place.

CBRE research indicates that in the fourth quarter of 2022, the Greater Boston market received more than 1 million square feet of new R&D space, of which 73.8 percent was preleased. By the end of the year, the metro area had 15.3 million square feet of R&D space under construction, with Cambridge accounting for 4.1 million square feet of that.

According to the same source, during the same quarter, the life science market in Cambridge recorded a positive absorption of 51,500 square feet, resulting in a total of more than 1 million square feet for the last year. CBRE also reported that the availability rate in Cambridge decreased by 40 basis points from 13.8 percent to 13.4 percent, while the vacancy rate increased by 90 basis points to a still tight 2.1 percent. Additionally, the sublease rate in Cambridge increased by 10 basis points, reaching 3.9 percent.