Client Success

Sherin and Lodgen congratulates Rafi Investments on acquisition and financing of Ames Business Park, now Somernova, in Somerville

Sherin and Lodgen LLP congratulates its client Rafi Investments – Somerville, LLC, an affiliate of Rafi Properties, in its acquisition of Ames Business Park in Somerville, MA. Now known as Somerville’s Innovation Hub (Somernova), this campus of innovation is the entrepreneurial epicenter of the city. The 300,000-square-foot mixed-use site, located in the city’s Union Square, is home to vibrant and popular anchor tenants such as Greentown Labs, Artisan ’s Asylum, Brooklyn Boulders, and Aeronaut Brewing Company, among others. Rafi purchased the property from JFW, LLC in April 2018.

Carla M. Moynihan, a partner in Sherin and Lodgen’s Real Estate Department, led the legal team, which provided a wide range of legal services to Rafi, involving project finance, environmental due diligence, title/survey review, zoning, closing documentation, lease review, ADA related matters, corporate formation, and employee / independent contractor counsel.

Rafi owns, develops, manages, and invests in mixed-use residential and commercial real estate in Boston and Hong Kong. In addition to the purchase of Ames Business Park, the company’s portfolio also includes 530 Washington in Downtown Crossing, 126 Salem St. (also known as the Chrysanthemum building), residential portfolios in Boston, Brookline, and Cambridge, as well as mixed-use developments in Hong Kong. The firm is led by managing directors Collin Yip and Baillie Yip.