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BOSTON-One of Boston's most architecturally significant office buildings has been underpinned with a 21st century mortgage for $6 million. The note from Principal Global Investors on behalf of Terra Firma LLC was arranged by EagleBridge Capital, which guided the ownership through a defeasance process to secure the funding.

"We concluded that by defeasing the current loan, our client could lower the rate and increase cash flow by putting a new mortgage in place," says EagleBridge principal Ted Sidel, whose Boston-based firm has become adept at helping borrowers when a defeasance approach is required to repay existing mortgages. The concept has evolved rapidly since emerging in recent years as a way to address one of the more onerous elements of CMBS financing.

Although it is more than 100 years old, 33 Broad St. is a fixture in Boston's Downtown office market. The renaissance revival design was a product of Shepley Rutan and Coolidge, Boston's leading architectural concern at the turn of the 20th century, and claims a place on the National Register of Historic Places. The 12-story, 41,000-sf building was renovated at the start of the decade by Fairlane Properties, a local firm that updated the elevators and common areas and boosted tenancy before selling it in 2003.