Lennar Corp. Makes a Play for Fan Pier

BOSTON-Fan Pier, the 20-acre mixed-use development site that is considered the heart of South Boston’s waterfront, could soon be in the hands of a new owner. Lennar Corp., a Miami-based residential developer, is rumored to be close to signing a deal with Nicholas Pritzker, the Chicago-based developer who spent nearly three years getting the $1.2-billion hotel, office and residential complex permitted.

According to published reports, Lennar is close to an agreement with Pritzker to buy the property for $130 million. A spokesperson for the city tells GlobeSt.com that Lennar did have a meeting with Pritzker, Mayor Thomas M. Menino and Boston Redevelopment Authority director Mark Maloney to discuss the deal. She declined to confirm any other details. Calls to Lennar Corp. and to Pritzker’s local representatives were not returned before deadline.

Pritzker never managed to secure the necessary financing to move the project forward and he announced a few months ago that he would be selling the property. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP’s New York City and Boston-based team were retained to market the site and at the time a source involved in the deal told GlobeSt.com that the firm was expecting the property to bring in somewhere around $200 million.