Urban Innovation Campus Planned For Former Boston Globe Site; Branded “The Beat”

BOSTON—Nordblom Company announced its plans to establish an urban innovation campus at the former Boston Globe site on Morrissey Boulevard. Capitalizing on Boston’s global position as a center for technology and innovation, Nordblom will bring the 16-acre vacant property ‘back to life’ as a new center for creativity, vibrancy, and ingenuity.

Renamed ‘The BEAT’ (The Boston Exchange for Accelerated Technology), to pay homage to the ‘beat’ reporters who wrote at the Globe ‘s Dorchester location for more than 60 years, the 695,000-sf building will be rejuvenated and reconfigured on the iconic building’s existing footprint to attract individuals and companies working in sectors that are moving the Boston economy forward, including technology, life sciences, and advanced manufacturing.

Given the long successful history of the Boston Globe at the site as a result of its close proximity to the city center, Nordblom looks forward to taking advantage of the new market for urban, modernized office spaces. “We are creating a high-energy destination for workers that will be pulsing with activity,” lauds Ogden Hunnewell, Executive Vice President/Partner of Nordblom Company. “This approach will create local jobs and business opportunities, while optimizing tax revenues for the City. We expect The BEAT to be a highly desirable and bustling campus with abundant open space and adjacency to UMass Boston, with easy access to the MBTA Red Line,” he adds.

In addition to office space, The BEAT will feature numerous amenities including a fitness center and food hall with a possible brewpub as well. The floor plan for the new facility capitalizes on the building’s existing layout, which includes both dramatic high ceilings and large, open floor plates with ample natural light.

Nordblom filed its plans with the BPDA at the end of January to begin the redevelopment process. The developer has already facilitated several meetings with neighborhood residents and community groups to discuss plans as well as shared goals for the site. Pending project approval, it is hoped that work will begin on The BEAT this summer.

The Boston Globe building was first constructed in 1958 and expanded several times throughout the years. In 2017, the newspaper sold the building and moved its newsroom and business operations to downtown Boston and its printing facilities to Taunton, MA. This new development, however, seeks to bring that fast-paced work environment back to the site in the form of a modern, campus-style workspace.

Rendering Inside Atrium

Ogden Hunnewell