FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 29, 2018

Contacts:
Glenn KnicKrehm, President
Constellation Charitable Foundation
(617) 939-1900
info@constellationcenter.org

Andrew W. Hoar¸ President and Co-Managing Partner
CBRE New England
(617) 912-7010
andy.hoar@cbre-ne.com

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Constellation Charitable Foundation Sells Kendall Square Land

Cambridge, MA—The Board of Directors of the Constellation Charitable Foundation has announced the sale today of its Kendall Square land, for $50.5 million, to BioMed Realty. The Foundation has devoted nearly twenty years to world-class pioneering research, design, and construction planning in many fields, in order to build a fine venue for the performing arts, a venue thoroughly reimagined based on extensive research with audience members, artists, and arts organizations. In the meantime however, the complex urban environment of the site was also rapidly evolving, which finally rendered the site no longer suitable or viable for this ambitious project. The Board therefore decided that its most cost-effective and realistic strategic option is now to sell its highly sought-after land, and to pursue elsewhere its philanthropic performing arts missions.  

The work of the Constellation Foundation will therefore continue, exploring replications or adaptations of its concepts and designs for performance venues at other locations. The Foundation will also continue to develop, publish, and disseminate its research results for the design, construction, and operation of state-of-the-art performance venues; to consult with colleague organizations in planning new, restored, or renovated cultural facilities; and to help support other cultural institutions and community projects which complement the aspirations of the Foundation.

This ongoing work is made possible by the strategically significant accomplishments that the Constellation team has made since 1996, pursuing the planning for the intended five-hall world-class performing arts venue, “The Constellation Center.” This work has been awarded numerous patents, with additional applications pending, and achieved revolutionary innovations embodied in the designs for a public facility for the performance of music, opera, theater, dance, and cinema. It was also designed to be used for community, educational, and family events, and included meeting, conference, and function space in support of local groups, arts organizations, and the Kendall Square Innovation District. All of this intellectual property, fortunately, is a movable feast, for application and realization on one or more sites elsewhere.

The Constellation Charitable Foundation Board and Staff are deeply grateful to our innumerable colleagues and organizations world-wide, and especially to the many Cambridge- and Boston-area community groups, who have supported and assisted our momentous work thus far.  We especially appreciate and thank our many generous donors, and we are immensely grateful to the City of Cambridge for its enduring support over the years. We assure everyone that the inestimable value of their philanthropic contributions, both of financial support and in time and expertise, will find rich fruit in our future endeavors.

43 Thorndike Street
Suite 301
Cambridge, MA
02141
Tel 617.939.1900 Fax 617.939.0190