It is not exactly a tree growing in Brooklyn, but Baltimore can now claim its first mass timber office building on Boston St.
The aptly named 40Ten Boston, for its location at 4010 Boston St., stands out for being the city's first office building built largely from heavy lumber, rather than steel or concrete, earning it an Impact Award as judged by real estate professionals familiar with the market.
The unique building material required the team at 28 Walker Development to work closely with local building code and fire officials to familiarize city officials with the construction process and its safety attributes.
The project is part of a larger mixed-use development called The Collective at Canton. The community, part of a former industrial area, sits within designated opportunity and enterprise zones, making the property owners eligible for certain economic benefits and tax breaks.
"The developer took the chance to build a new office building in Baltimore City in a post-COVID era. While the innovative building design brings a new type of office product to Baltimore, the developer has not taken credit for the impact of leasing part of the building to a tenant that created net new occupancy in Baltimore, which has seen numerous tenants take flight to the county," wrote Terri Harrington, an Impact Award judge and managing principal at Harrington Commercial Real Estate.
About the Project: The four-story, 104,500-square-foot property was 63% per-leased before it was completed.
What the Judges Said: "The innovation with the mass timber construction is not only beautiful aesthetically but more importantly it champions environmental sustainability through the project. The project is also in an opportunity and enterprise zone allowing for tax advantage and further economic growth in this part of the city revitalizing the community," wrote Lacey Johansson, assistant vice president for leasing at St. John Properties.
They Made It Happen: Mark Sapperstein is the chief executive for the developer and property manager, 28 Walker Development. Moseley Architects' Gayatri Hegde was the lead architect. Joe Nolan is a principal with the leasing team at NAI-KLNB. The general contractor was Chesapeake Contracting Group and Kimley-Horne provided civil engineering services.