New England Development and Eastern Real Estate announced today that, along with their partners, Rockpoint Group, L.LC. and Lubert-Adler, they have reached agreement with the Taj Group to acquire the Taj Boston. The transaction is scheduled to close in July of 2016. Terms of the transaction are confidential at this time and are subject to final approvals. The hotel will remain a Taj branded property.
The Taj Boston, a 273-room luxury hotel on Arlington Street overlooking Commonwealth Avenue, the Public Garden and the first block of Newbury Street, has a storied history – opening in 1927 and operating as a Ritz Carlton before it was acquired by Taj in 2006. This is the latest among many real estate ventures that NED and Eastern have worked on together. They are developing one of the largest mixed-use developments in Massachusetts, the two million SF University Station in Westwood, MA, and also developed Palm Beach Outlets and Marketplace at the Outlets in West Palm Beach, FL.
Stephen R. Karp, Chairman of New England Development, expressed his enthusiasm about the planned acquisition. “We are thrilled to join with Eastern and our partners Rockpoint and Lubert-Adler to acquire this legendary hotel property – located in one of the country’s most famous shopping districts.”
Daniel J. Doherty, III, a Principal of Eastern Real Estate, commented, “Together our partnership looks forward to working with our new employees, the community and the City of Boston to redefine the vibrant and luxurious potential of this internationally acclaimed, iconic hotel.”
New England Development, one of the nation’s premier real estate development and management companies, is led by Chairman Stephen R. Karp, Vice Chairman Steven S. Fischman, and President Douglass E. Karp. As part of NED’s national portfolio that includes retail, mixed-use, and hospitality assets plus marinas and golf courses, the company operates luxury hotels on Nantucket, MA, including the White Elephant Hotel and The Wauwinet. Both hotels are on the Condé Nast Traveler Gold List and are recipients of the Forbes Travel Guide Four Star Award. NED was also a major part of the team that developed the Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel adjacent to the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.
Eastern Real Estate is a privately held commercial real estate firm with expertise in capital investment, real estate development, and asset management. Eastern specializes in adding value to complex real estate opportunities and has a long-standing track record of successful investing across multiple asset classes. Eastern was founded and is led by Principals Daniel J. Doherty III and Brian J. Kelly.
Lubert-Adler, which partnered with NED and Eastern on the acquisition and development of Palm Beach Outlets in West Palm Beach, FL, focuses on acquiring and enhancing urban mixed use and business hospitality assets as well as mid-size, value-add rental assets .
Rockpoint Group, L.L.C. is a real estate private equity firm headquartered in Boston, with additional primary offices in Dallas and San Francisco. Since 1994, Rockpoint’s founding Managing Members with others have sponsored twelve commingled funds and related co-investment vehicles, raising approximately $17 billion in capital commitments and investing approximately $13 billion of equity in over 365 transactions with a total capitalization of approximately $48 billion. Rockpoint employs a fundamental value approach to investing in both its opportunistic and lower-risk strategies and focuses on select product types and geographic regions, with a primary emphasis on opportunities in major coastal markets in the United States.