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Boston & New England  + Boston  + Office  | 

LNR Partners Takes Ownership of Back Bay Offices in Special Servicing

A 540,000-square-foot Back Bay office building known as the Park Square Building is now in the hands of a lender that placed the winning bid at an auction Tuesday, the Boston Business Journal reported. Starwood Capital Partners subsidiary LNR Partners bid $95 million to take control of the property at 31 St. James Ave., for which it became special servicer in 2024.

The Business Journal reported in 2024 that a $160-million loan backing the property transferred to special servicing due to cash flow issues that began after WeWork Inc.’s 2022 departure from the Park Square Building, where it leased 136,500 square feet. Another tenant, Bay State College, closed down in 2023.

When the property transferred to special servicing, it was 42% occupied, according to the Business Journal. The previous lender was Bank of America, which provided the $160-million mortgage in 2017, 20 years after former owner Capital Partners acquired the property.

Read More News Stories About: Starwood Capital Group
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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 16-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 7-10 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).

  • ◦Sale/Acquisition
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