Boston University has moved forward with its plans to sell many of its Kenmore Square properties after nearly four decades of ownership. Barnes and Noble’s lease will be extended through the change of ownership, BU spokesperson Colin Riley confirmed.
“There will always be a place for students to get their books,” he said.
The university has hired a broker to assist in the sale of the nine buildings located on the north side of Kenmore, Riley said. Once the buildings are sold, the new owners will decide on each building’s functionality, Riley said.
“The properties put on sale include the [Barnes and Noble] bookstore, the building on the other side of the alley, which includes Bertucci’s,” Riley said, “and the properties on the other side of Deerfield [Street].”
The nine buildings on sale are 648 Beacon St., 541 Commonwealth Ave. and 11-19 Deerfield St., Riley said. These buildings house several businesses, including Barnes and Noble, Bertucci’s, Cornwall’s Pub and the United States Postal Service.
Putting the properties on the market would further open up Kenmore as the gateway to campus, Riley said. Revenue generated from the sale will help BU accomplish its core values and goals for students through more research funding and teaching efforts that provide students with more opportunities.
Riley also said a firm is currently marketing the sale so there is no timeline as to when the buildings will be sold.
President of the Kenmore Association and owner of Cornwall’s Pub Pamela Beale said this would not be the first time BU’s property sale affects Kenmore’s landscape.
“Cornwall’s has been in the square for 40 years,” Beale said. “We used to be housed across the street, but when the university sold the Hotel Commonwealth, we were moved over to this side.”
BU has worked with Cornwall’s, and they “have known [BU] to be considerate of the community given that context and previous experience,” as the university made sure they were included in the process, Beale said.
Beale added that the university has a much greater opportunity now than they did when they first bought the Kenmore properties.
“We understand why the university is doing this,” she said. “Owning the properties may not have been part of [the university’s] long-term plan. They invested in the square and they stabilized the square.”
Though current selling process has made parties involved anxious, Beale said, they have had good experiences with the university in the past and aren’t too worried.
“[A change like this] has happened before and it turned out well for everyone,” Beale said. “You have to believe the same will be true the next time it happens.”
Several students shared their thoughts on the decision to put the properties on the market, some saying that they have concerns for the future of Barnes and Noble.
Alexis Morales, a sophomore in the College of General Studies, said she doesn’t understand the financial reason to the properties’ sale.
“I don’t really think BU needs more money,” she said. “More and more people keep donating their money to [BU] so I don’t understand why they’re selling their buildings while they continue to build more buildings too.”
Heather Ryan, a freshman in CGS, said she wonders whether the new owners would relocate the bookstore.
“Barnes and Noble is convenient where it is right now,” she said. “Moving it would probably be a problem for a lot of students, so that would definitely be one of the drawbacks. If selling it is going to bring more money to the school, that could be a good thing.”
Taylor Kocher, a freshman in the College of Communication, said the sale should not cause any problem as long as current tenants stay where they are following the purchase.
“[The sale] will all be fine as long as nothing happens to the properties,” she said. “Obviously as students we need the bookstore to stay where it is, so it will be fine if the properties stay where they are.”
