New England Development and its partners broke ground this morning on the  2.1M SF University Station in Westwood, a mixed-use project that will cost at least $500M and has been six years in the making. (Back then, Beyonce topped the charts. Good to know some things survived the recession.) It'll fill a huge hole in an underserved retail market, NED EVP Douglass Karp tells Bisnow.

The 130-acre site is adjacent to a commuter rail station where I-93 and Rt 128 meet in a high-income community, Douglass adds. NED, Eastern Real Estate, National Development, Charles River Realty Investors, and Clarion Partners paid $45M for the property last year. They plan to build 750k SF of retail, 350k SF of office, 650 residential units, up to 160 hotel units, and a 100-unit assisted living and memory care facility. Phases with housing and retail anchored by Wegmans and Target are slated to start opening in '15. This construction has prompted the state to move ahead with major road and highway improvements.

Construction & Development

North Bennet Street School prez Miguel Gomez-Ibanez, Mayor Menino and NBSS Board Chair Charlie Kline cut the ribbon Friday on a new $24.5M home for the 132-year-old school that trains craftspeople. In a relo and expansion, the school that hones the skills of locksmiths, piano tuners, furniture makers and many others was able to remain in its North End hood by swapping it's old building for surplus City properties and by making a cash payment, says NBSS's Nancy Jenner.

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B'nai B'rith Housing broke ground for The Coolidge at Sudbury, a 64-unit apartment complex for active seniors and older adults age 55 and over. The development at 189 Boston Post Road that will help people stay in suburban Sudbury as they age is financed through housing tax credits, state housing programs, the Town of Sudbury Housing trust and the West Metro HOME Consortium. The Architectural Team designed the project.

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The Elizabeth Stone House, a nonprofit that aids families experiencing domestic violence and homelessness, won a $1M city grant to help it build a $20 M building at 3012 Washington St in Roxbury. The non-profit is conducting a $6M capital campaign and expects the remaining funds to come from city/ state grants and tax credits. Construction might start next spring. The 54k SF project will have: 27 apartments, 6,800 SF of childcare space and 9,200 SF of program and office space.

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Boston's first universally accessible playground at the Charlestown Navy Yard was unveiled at a recent ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by Mayor Menino, Liberty Mutual Insurance CEO David Long and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital prez David Storto. The $1M playground has: a 23k SF boardwalk, 63 pieces of play equipment in a 15k SF rubber playground area and ADA accessible paths and gathering spaces.

Sales

The Avenues Group LLC, an affiliate of True North Capital Partners of Connecticut, paid $21.2M to Chestnut/Highland LLC for a 116-unit portfolio of apartments at 136-138 Highland Ave in Cambridge and 268-288 Chestnut Hill Ave in Brighton. CBRE/New England's Simon Butler and Biria St. John repped the seller and found the buyer.

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Highlands North Realty Trust paid Aimco Fall River LLC $20.5M for Royal Crest Estates, a 216-unit Tudor-style apartment complex in Fall River. Steve Witten and Victor Nolletti of Marcus & Millichap multifamily brokerage division - Institutional Property Advisors - repped the seller in the sale of 37 Courtney St. Todd Tremblay is the Massachusetts broker of record.

Berkeley Investments started construction on a $10.5 M, 34-unit apartment building at 625 McGrath Highway in Somerville. Paving the way for the project, it recently closed on its $2.25M purchase of the former Highland Auto Parts store site. Berkeley's three-level, townhouse-style project will have studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units in sizes from 650 SF to-1,100 SF and will be priced between $2.40 SF/and $2.90/SF per month.

Assignments

WinnResidential, the property management arm of WinnCompanies, has taken over all management responsibilities at the Chelsea Place apartment community in Chelsea. Previously, the WinnResidential team took the 56-unit mid-rise apartment community from vacant to 100% leased.

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Margulies Perruzzi Architects will design Best Doctors' new 48k SF office at Presidents Place in Quincy owned by Related Beal and Boston Andes Capital. Other project team members are TMP Consulting Engineers and Fort Point Project Management. Boston Realty Advisors' Adam Schneier and Transwestern's Tony Karmin repped Best Doctors while JLL repped the landlord.

Executives on the Move

Commercial real estate veteran Karen McShea has joined Avison Young New England as SVP to advise clients on regional and global real estate leasing and development. Most recently an executive director and principal at Colliers International, Karen has over 20 years of global commercial real estate experience.

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Nitsch Engineering CFO Michael Kenealy, who has over 30 years of experience managing professional service firms, has been promoted to EVP. He's responsible for the company's financial operations, assists in oversight of its technical operations and as a member of the leadership team and Board of Directors is involved in strategic planning.

By the Numbers

The BRA research division tells us that: the city has the highest concentration of young adults among the 25 most populous US cities and they make up 48.2% of the resident labor force. The number of city residents age 20 to 34-years-old has increased 11% since 2000, and the number of 20 to 24 year olds increased by 26%. Allston has the highest percentage of young adult residents, 65%.