James Hook & Co. owners selling the property

[LindaWhit]

http://www.boston.com/news/local/mass...

But it sounds like they're hoping to remain on the site, even with other construction taking some of the space.

[rlh]

Maybe this explains why the fish market is so lackluster now in terms of marginal freshness and slow, mindless service - 3 of last 4 visits have been disappointments - it no longer on my short list of premium fishmongers following some very fishy halibut last week - now I will make the detour necessary for New Deal when it's open and rely on Whole Foods otherwise - the ones in Cambridge, NOT the Woburn or Medford locations, though they can be fine if you choose and sniff wisely.

[C. Hamster]

I'm guessing the fire, the economy, the price of lobsters made selling such a prime piece of RE too much to resist.

Having a lobster shack there is pretty inefficient land use.

[AHan]

Agreed on the inefficiency. Slow economy motivating sale of prime real estate? I doubt that. Price of lobster probably not a factor either, as they are talking about a leaseback and leaving the store in place.

[C. Hamster]

The leaseback doesn't make a lot of sense to me, due to the inefficiency issue.

Who wants to buy expensive property to be the landlord to a lobster outlet? There is obviously a higher and better use for that property.

I think it's certainly within the realm of reason to surmise that a business in declining health due to the factors I mentioned plus more probably would consider/resort to selling their most attractive asset.

[AHan]

Well, they have publicly said they plan on keeping the business going. It is not inconceivable that they would sell to a developer who would use the lot more efficiently, possibly rebuilding and inluding space for their operation (ground floor operation with office or mixed use space above). Short of that , business people don't typically look to unload "their most attractive asset" when prices are at a 15 year low and interest rates are historically low.

[C. Hamster]

True enough, unless they have no other option.

We are seeing that altogether too often these days.

[Blumie]

If they're talking about a sale-leaseback, that's typically just a financing mechanism -- a form of mortgage, or secured loan. The "buyer" in a sale-leaseback typically is a bank or other financial institution, not a developer, which is not looking to own the land in the same sense.

[Blumie]

So I've now read about Hook's plans in the Globe and the Boston Business Journal. They are not looking to do a sale-leaseback in the financing sense, but rather they are looking to cash out of the very valuable piece of land they own, but do so in a way that allows them to continue to operate their business on the site. But they would not just sell the land and then lease it back for their temporary trailer or a rebuilt Hook, but rather incorporate their business ("...the five siblings envision a new building that will incorporate the family business and perhaps a restaurant," according to the Boston Business Journal article) into a new development, which certainly would include other retail, office and/or residential space.

[AHan]

Yes, that is what I said.

[yumyum]

When I originally posted this news, in the lobster thread, I said I thought the lease-back idea is a great one. I still do. The family will make a fortune on that land, but will be able to remain in the retail lobster business. It's a win-win.

[StriperGuy]

I agree, build a 15 story building, just leave Hook on the ground floor.