Friday, October 3, 2008

Real Deal

What companies are moving, staying or relocating?

By Mass High Tech Staff

TechTarget relocating to Norwood

Online IT media publisher TechTarget Inc. has announced plans to relocate its Needham corporate headquarters to a new facility in Norwood. TechTarget (Nasdaq: TTGT) will occupy 113,000 square feet of the 200,000 square feet of new space available at Upland Woods Corporate Center.

The four-story building, currently being built, complies with the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED-certified standards for green building. For energy savings, the site will feature an energy management and air quality system, more natural light, low-glare electric lighting and recyclable construction materials. Additionally, the site will have a fitness facility and cafeteria.

Braintree-based Campanelli Cos. and CommonFund Realty Inc. are responsible for developing the new building.

TechTarget reports having more than 50 technology-specific websites and more than 6.6 million registered members.

One Communications Corp. gathers in new green office

One Communications Corp. signed a lease for 75,495 square feet of office space at 5 Wall St. in Burlington. The competitive local exchange carrier company will be phasing the consolidation of its Waltham and Marlborough locations beginning in November and concluding next fall.

The new location is LEED certified and will offer daylight views for 100 percent of the occupied space, high-efficiency fluorescent and LED lighting and water-efficient plumbing.

Executive vice president Jack Kerrigan, senior vice president Steve Cook and advisor Mark Norton of Grubb & Ellis represented the landlord, Burlington-based The Gutierrez Co. Managing principal Jim Thomson, executive vice president and principal Mike Ippolito and managing director Brian Carcaterra of Newmark Knight Frank represented One Communications.

Koko Fitness Inc., a developer of interactive software and hardware for the fitness and wellness industry, is relocating its headquarters from 136 Longwater Drive in Norwell to a 5,138 square-foot office space at 300 Ledgewood Place in Rockland.

The new headquarters is a first-class office space located in a three-story, multi-tenant building within the campus setting of Ledgewood Office Park. 

Boston-based Colliers Meredith & Grew executive vice president James Elcock and assistant vice president David Goodhue represented the landlord, Braintree-based F.P. Giglio Enterprises. Koko was represented by partner Thomas Kent of Boston-based DTZ FHO Partners.

BioTrove Inc. expanded its headquarters and renewed its lease at 10 and 12 Gill St. in Woburn. The biotech company, which is collaborating to improve blood typing and to research genetic biomarkers for lung cancer, added approximately 5,000 square feet to its existing lease of more than 33,000 square feet of office and lab space. Company officials said BioTrove is also expanding in San Carlos, Calif. and London.

BioTrove (Nasdaq: BTRV) develops two major technologies: Open Array, for genomic research in agriculture, public health and disease research; and RapidFire, for enabling fast drug discoveries.

In July, the biotech company and Wilmington, N.C.-based Gene Express Inc. received a two-year grant from the National Institutes of Health to create a standardized genetic profiling test for indicators of lung cancer risk.

Leasing and property manager Tony Spencer and key accounts manager Mark Knittle represented the landlord, Cummings Properties LLC, in the transaction. CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. (NYSE: CBG) executive vice president and partner Andy Majewski represented BioTrove.

Semprus BioSciences signed a new lease to relocate and expand its headquarters to 9,681 square-foot One Kendall Square, Building 1400 in Cambridge. The building is a 133,077 square-foot, five-story office and laboratory building.

Semprus is a venture-backed biotechnology company developing medical devices incorporating the first implantable and permanently antimicrobial surface technology.

Vice president Tucker Hansen of Boston-based Colliers Meredith & Grew represented Semprus, working with vice president Robert Doherty of Boston-based The Beal Cos. LLP, the landlord. Doherty was assisted by partner J. Duncan Gratton and vice president Kimberly Roop of Boston-based DTZ FHO Partners. 

Startup DynamicOps has subleased a 3,281 square-foot office space for its headquarters at 20 Burlington Mall Road in Burlington. A venture-funded spinout of Credit Suisse Group (NYSE: CS), DynamicOps is a virtual infrastructure provisioning and management software company. Owned by Boston Properties Inc., the location is a four-story, 100,000 square-foot building.

Boston-based Colliers Meredith & Grew senior vice president John Carroll III, vice president Elias Demakes and associate John Dolan III represented DynamicOps and worked directly with the sub-landlord, First American Title Insurance.

Real deal is a monthly collection of real estate transactions involving technology and life sciences companies. Tenant names appear in bold. Please send real estate news and photos to Rodney Brown at rbrown@masshightech.com.