Medford Lab Development Site Heading To Auction
Another life sciences development site is slated to hit the auction block in Greater Boston as the sector faces worsening distress.
A Medford lab development site is scheduled for an auction on Aug. 19, according to auctioneer Paul E. Saperstein Co. The site at 4054 Mystic Valley Parkway was approved for an eight-story life sciences development, planned by Rise Development & Construction.
Rise was partnering with the owner of the 1.4-acre site, the Matarazzo family, on the redevelopment. The site is home to an 8K SF commercial building and 7K SF retail space, including a Bertucci's restaurant.
Rise said in April 2023 it closed on a financing deal for the $200M project, though it didn't disclose the sources of its financing.
Rise didn't respond to Bisnow's request for comment.
This isn't the first development site Rise has been connected to that has hit the auction block.
Last year, a 2.7-acre Dorchester property slated to be redeveloped into housing, offices and retail went to auction. Rise sued its partner, City Point Capital, in February 2024 over City Point's refusal to pay the team's consultant for energy-efficiency work.
In April, a site owned by Rise at 33 Cambridge St. in Charlestown went into foreclosure. The company planned to build a 24-story, 285-unit residential tower on the site.
The Greater Boston lab market has experienced worsening fundamentals for the last three years, with vacancy rising to 35.6% at the end of the second quarter.
Earlier this week, Liberty Mutual bid $65M for a lab complex in Wellesley, The Boston Globe reported. The bidder was the lender on the lab building at 93 Worcester St., developed by Beacon Capital Partners.
In June, lender Starwood Property Trust acquired a Fort Point lab conversion project at 33-41 Farnsworth St. for $57.2M, Banker & Tradesman reported. The firm bought the property from MLL Capital, which had received an $80M loan from Starwood for the conversion.
