CBRE/New England principal Gary Lemire referred questions regarding the pricing and process to Brickman, but did acknowledge that his firm has been peddling 40 Court St. on behalf of Carlye, a private opportunity firm based in Washington, DC Carlyle has been active in Massachusetts for nearly 10 years, previously owning such well-known buildings as 99 Summer St. in Boston and 955 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge. The firm paid $21 million in September 2000 to buy 40 Court St. from Citizen's Bank along with erstwhile partner Paradigm Properties. That deal amounted to about $187 per sf.

If the $37-million figure is accurate for the Brickman deal, that would equate to a per-sf price of around $335, nearly double the rate paid by Carlyle. One source claims Carlyle was "dazzled" sufficiently by Brickman's proposal to forego a broader marketing program that CBRE/New England had been hired to conduct. Lemire deflected inquiries on how Brickman was identified, but says he was joined in representing Carlyle by CBRE/New England investment sales specialists William Moylan and Chris Angelone, as well as Timothy Lyne and William Crean, leasing brokers who represent 40 Court St. on those matters.

Presently, the 12-story building is more than 95% leased to a broad range of tenants, including services firms, real estate professionals such as Trinity Financial, and several organizations involved in the healthcare sector. According to Lemire, an added level of excitement will soon be incorporated into 40 Court St.'s streetscape, with trendy restaurateur Oceanaire Seafood having recently committed to 11,000 sf on the ground level. "People are going to be amazed at what they see," promises Lemire. Minnesota-based Oceanaire describes itself as an "ultra-fresh seafood restaurant." The chain already has 13 locations in operation, and is dishing up another four in the coming months, including the 40 Court St. offering.

Calls to Brickman officials in their New York headquarters were not returned by press deadline, but sources say they believe the transaction is set to close this week. Lemire described the buyers as "really happy" with the outcome. "It gives them a bigger presence in Boston, which is where they want to be," says Lemire. In the past year, Brickman has acquired two other mid-sized Boston buildings, One Bowdoin Square in Government Center and 55 Summer St. in the Downtown Crossing district.