| The Bulfinch Companies Inc. | |
| Type: | Private |
| Foundation: | 1936 |
| Founder: | Samuel W. Poorvu |
| Location: | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Key People: | Eric Schlager, CEO, Robert Schlager, President, S. Lawrence Schlager, Chairman Emeritus |
| Industry: | Real Estate |
| Products: | Property Management, Property developer |
The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. is an American real estate firm headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
Bulfinch was founded in 1936 by Samuel W. Poorvu, a Lithuanian immigrant who began his career as a bricklayer, and soon started a small company in Boston building and developing Post Offices. Poorvu [1] was dubbed "The Post Office King of America" by the Wall Street Journal for his role in developing over 100 postal facilities nationwide for the United States Postal Service.[2]
Bulfinch is owned and has been continuously operated by the Schlager family.[3] Since inception, Bulfinch has "developed, acquired, and re-positioned in excess of $4 billion in commercial real estate assets."[4] Bulfinch owns and/or operates nearly 4 million square feet of property, primarily centered in New England. Bulfinch is currently in its third generation of management.[5]
Bulfinch was awarded the "Distinguished Real Estate Award" by the National Association of Industrial & Office Properties in 2007.[6] Bullfinch has also been awarded commendations by the Mayor of Cambridge, Massachusetts.[7] The City of Cambridge, Massachusetts awarded Bulfinch the Certificate of Preservation Merit.[8] Bullfinch received LEED Gold Certifications by the USGBC.[9]
Several Bulfinch properties have earned the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star certification. Banker & Tradesman has identified several Bulfinch sites as "Hot Properties".[10] The American Council of Engineering awarded Bulfinch a silver award for Cambridge Discovery Park in 2008.[11] Bulfinch received recognition at the 2011 GoGreen Awards for "their work in reducing storm water runoff and improving water quality".[12]
Located adjacent to MIT's campus in Kendall Square, Bulfinch, in partnership with MIT and Harrison Street Real Estate, acquired three buildings: 610 Main Street North, 700 Main Street and 1 Portland Street "for 1.1 Billion Dollars".[13] The three properties feature 677,000 square feet of lab, office and retail space, with a parking garage that includes 650 spaces.[14] Key tenants include Pfizer, Novartis, Lab Central as well as restaurants Sulmona, Café Luna Revela, and Boston Burger.
Bulfinch acquired 10 Brookline Place in 2018 for 153 million dollars.[15] The property consists of six floors with a total of 173,000 square feet of office space with 240 parking spaces available on 1.7 acres of land.[16]
In July 2012, Bulfinch acquired the 300,000 square foot Atrium Mall in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts from Simon Property Group, with plans to re-position it as a mixed-use medical office property, partially demolishing it, and then rebuilding and renovating it.[17] [18] The Lifetime Center reopened in Fall 2017 with Lifetime Fitness and Dana–Farber Cancer Institute as anchor stores.[19]
Samuel Poorvu originally developed the Harvard Square United States Post Office located in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1954.[20] This facility was redeveloped in 2000 by Bulfinch.[21]
The building was the "first modern industrial structure in Cambridge, Massachusetts" and was designed by Shepley Bulfinch in 1938 for B B Chemical Company.[22] The building was acquired by Polaroid Corporation and was used as their corporate headquarters for some time. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1982.[23] Bulfinch acquired the property in 2000.[24] [25] The Information Technology group of Harvard University (HUIT) is currently the sole tenant.[26]
Cambridge Discovery Park is located on the site of the former Arthur D. Little Company headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is an 820,000 SF master-planned development with multiple LEED certified buildings.[27] It is home to Forrester Research world headquarters and the Harvard-Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.[28] [29] Siemens AG also leases space in the property.[30] [31]