Ron Friedman, with Richards Barry Joyce & Partners, tells GlobeSt.com that the deal, which gives Nuance the entire sixth floor, has generated increased interest in the Gutierrez Co.-owned property and should lead to further lease-up in the next quarter. Gutierrez has its headquarters on the building's fifth floor.

"We're very close to finalizing other transactions," he says, noting that a remodel of the building's lobby and the addition of an upscale food service company and new locker and shower facilities have made the property more appealing to tenants. "Once those amenities became tangible and there was more life in the building, we've seen a larger uptake in interest."

Also helping to spur leasing interest, Friedman says, has been an increase in rents and shortage of space in the nearby Waltham market where rents are hitting the $30-per-sf range. "As the Waltham market continues to evolve and touch the $30s, we're seeing tenants looking for rent relief further north," he says.