Norton says the Gillette relocation is part of a plan by Proctor & Gamble, Gillette's parent firm, to put all of the company's operations on one campus. As part of that relocation, Proctor & Gamble will spend between $35 million and $50 million to upgrade its One Gillette Park facility in South Boston.
Gillette's move from the Prudential Tower to South Boston, which is expected to be completed by December 2009, will put a total of 500,000 sf of prime Back Bay sublease space on the market in an area where large blocks of contiguous office space is a highly sought after commodity.
"We've had very solid demand," Tom O'Regan, vice president of Richards Barry Joyce and Partners, which is helping to market the space, tells GlobeSt.com. "The Back Bay is very tight and there's not a lot of space out there."
So far, about 75,000 sf of that space has already been leased, said another broker familiar with the lease up. Among the tenants who have signed on for the Gillette space is Eduventures, a research and consulting firm that last month inked a deal for 48,507 sf . Cost of Gillette's sublease space has not been disclosed but O'Regan says high-rise, direct lease space in the Back Bay usually leases for between $50 to $60 per sf.
While the Gillette space offers a high profile location and outstanding views, it comes with certain challenges, among them the short term remaining on the sublease, O'Regan says.
"It's only for a very specific part of the market," he notes. "It provides an opportunity for some people but others won't consider it because of its short term."
For companies looking for a longer term lease at the Prudential, O'Regan says, there's always the option of working out a deal with the building's owner, Boston Properties, to fill the sublease space and extend the lease beyond the two-year term.
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