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Robert Korff
CEO, Mark Development
Age: 60
Industry experience: 36 years
Mark Development is changing the landscape of Newton’s Washington Street corridor and set to accelerate the transformation of Boston’s Kenmore Square. The Wellesley real estate development firm founded by Robert Korff in 1990 is moving ahead with three major projects in Newtonville and West Newton while lining up financing for an iconic new hotel steps from Fenway Park. Korff is targeting an early 2021 groundbreaking for the 391-room hotel, which will feature a distinctive flatiron shape and a faceted, herringbone facade.
Q: Why did you bring in Chicago-based architects Studio Gang to design the Kenmore Square hotel?
A: We had caught word they were dying for the right opportunity to enter the Boston market when we were thinking about making architectural changes back in August 2018. I love their work. You’re front and center in the heart of a very important location in Boston’s history, and we felt it was appropriate to make a switch at that time and look at some fresh ideas. People like to talk about transformation. Transformation is a buzzword. For me, this is the poster child for what transformation really means. This small triangular site was really the linchpin of being able to reinvent the traffic patterns in the square itself and bring the pedestrian connections from the north side to the south side.
Q: Did you always envision a hotel as the best use for that site?
A: What makes the site and the building so interesting is it’s a unique flatiron shape, so that’s a huge positive, but it’s also its biggest negative in terms of being able to create an efficient floor plate. We ended up with hotel being the highest and best use from an economic standpoint, the more we thought about it.
Q: Is lining up a national operator a key to obtaining financing?
A: We’re negotiating with one now. I can’t announce it publicly yet, but it was important to us to find the right brand and right fit. It’s going to be a lifestyle boutique type. It’s got a heavy food component and it’s an appropriate use for the brand in Kenmore Square. A little edgy, but not too over the top.
Q: Are you expecting a substantial business traveler component given the recent office developments in the Fenway?
A: Without a doubt. We were surprised to learn how much undersupply there was in this particular submarket for hospitality. When we first approached the Red Sox to discuss it, they were thrilled that we had gone with hospitality. In their opinion, there was a big demand and not enough supply.
Q: What’s next for your redevelopment of the Barn Family Shoe Store site?
A: Over the past four or five years, I’ve been acquiring parcels along Washington Street and the mayor asked if I could hold off on development plans, not indefinitely but in the short term, while she conducted a full planning study. It’s the right thing to do, and I said I was totally in favor of it, as long as I can get going by the end of 2019. Things weren’t moving quickly and the Barn project in particular I had time commitments and couldn’t wait any longer. Because there’s no zoning available for me to use to build a mixed-use project, I was stuck. We had been designing our project in accordance with the rezoning and I said, “Why don’t we stick to the spirit of what the city came up with, but use Chapter 40B as a legal tool to seek approval from the city?” That’s our logic and how we’ve been approaching it. So far, it’s been very well-received.
Q: Are the bulk of your acquisitions off-market transactions?
A: I can’t remember the last deal that I did off a brochure. Everything I’ve done for 30 years is created by me. I like to go out and identify my own locations. To me, that’s really the fun part of the business. Shopping off a brochure for real estate takes all of the excitement out of it. It is a hard process but that’s what makes these properties so valuable.
Q: What’s the completion date for Washington Place, the redevelopment of parcels including the former Karoun restaurant site into 140 apartments?
A: Residents will be moving in mid-summer and we’re going to start to turn over space to the retailers in late spring for their buildout. You’ll have to ask me in a month [on rents]. People get sticker shock, but I’ve always made no secret of telling people that I’m going to charge whatever I can get. That’s why they call it a market rent. We’ll push the envelope and find out where rents top off. It’s the market-rate units that are needed in order to subsidize the affordables. When we did that deal we created a whole new bracket of affordability. We offered 10 percent on top of what the ordinance required, so that doesn’t come cheaply.
Q: How confident are you of approval for the 1 million-square-foot Riverside development?
A: The next milestone is a special permit and we have a schedule from the city council that puts us on track for a vote in the spring. I’d like to think due to the negotiations over the zoning which passed by a 22-0 [city council] vote in November 2019, it would surprise me to see any substantial pushback from the neighborhood group.
Q: Will developers shy away from Newton because of the local hurdles such as the March 3 referendum to possibly overturn approval of Northland’s Needham Street project?
A: Absolutely. It took a huge leap of faith for myself to take this plunge into a market like Newton with those kind of barriers. I came at it from a different perspective. Truly, for me it came from love of the city. I’ve raised my kids here and we’re a fabulous city, but we’re going to lose all the values that make it such a great city if we don’t start to make some changes here. We’re going to lose our diversity, which for me is what I loved about moving to Newton. I wanted my children to grow up in an environment that was more indicative of real life, not a white picket fence suburban neighborhood where everybody looks the same. We’re also starting to look very old.
Five Favorite Movies:
- The Deer Hunter
- There’s Something About Mary
- Wolf of Wall Street
- 1917
- Rocketman
