Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1542210
wbjournal.com | December 29, 2025 | Worcester Business Journal 15 Wicked Local Banking ™ Helping your business thrive by providing the right banking products and guidance that fit your unique needs. Get started today at centralfcu.com or call us at (800) 527-1017 Auburn • Milford • Northborough • Shrewsbury • Westborough • Worcester *Independent Service rating based on independent reviews by Feefo. Federally insured by NCUA. Equal Housing Lender. #1 Locally Owned Business Top 3 Best Credit Unions Business Lending Vehicles & Equipment Lines of Credit Real Estate Loans Construction Loans Business Visa Business Solutions Business Checking Commercial Access Line (Overdraft Protection) Business Money Market Average Customer Rating* 4.9/5 the Southbridge Innovation Center. Norton did not respond to requests for comment via voicemail and emails to himself and his legal counsel. FRA did not respond to emails or a voicemail le with the firm's office line. Tenants at FRA-owned properties include some of the most important entities in the Central Massachusetts economy, including UMass Memorial Medical Group, law firm Mirick, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette newspa- per, media organization MassLive, real estate brokerage Kelleher & Sadowsky Associates, the Worcester District Reg- istry of Deeds, law firm Fletcher Tilton, Bank of America, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, and Reliant Medical Group, according to CoStar and Google Maps listings. Other tenants include various federal agencies. Norton's financial troubles come despite high levels of occupancy in Mercantile Center's offices. Combined with all tenants, the office towers at 100 and 120 Front St. host more than 1,500 employees, according to the website for Mercantile Center. Managing directors and senior man- agement of FRA and its affiliates have developed, acquired, or managed more than $1.25 billion of real estate projects, according to FRA's website. Wood Partners sells Alta on the Row in Worcester for $157M to Morgan Stanley Alta on the Row, a 370-unit apartment community built in Worcester in 2024, has been sold to a Boston-based invest- ment group for $157 million. An entity belonging to Eaton Vance Real Estate Investment Group purchased the site of the four-story residential building and parking garage in a trans- REAL ESTATE action finalized on Oct. 14, according to Worcester District Registry of Deeds records. Eaton Vance Real Estate Investment Group is the real estate investment divi- sion of Eaton Vance Corp., the longtime Boston investment firm purchased by Morgan Stanley in 2021, according to a Morgan Stanley press release at the time. e property was purchased from an entity tied to Wood Partners, the Atlan- ta-based multi-family investment firm, which developed the site. Construction at the site, which includes the former location of the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, began in 2022, according to real estate data website CoStar. e sales price breaks down to about $424,324-per-unit. Alta on the Row has 249 one-bedroom units, 107 two-bedroom units, and 14 three-bedroom units. Average asking rents range from $2,432 for a one-bed- room unit to $3,806 for a three-bedroom unit, according to CoStar. e site has a 6.8% vacancy rate. e vacancy rate has consistently dropped since the building opened; it sat at 34.1% in the fourth quarter of last year. With 370 units, the site is the fourth largest multi-family property in Worcester, trailing the 404-unit Wash- ington Heights complex, Plumney Vil- lage, a 430-unit complex which sold for $100 million earlier in October, and the 1,219-unit Lincoln Village Apartments complex, according to CoStar. Alta on the Row continues to be man- aged by South Carolina-based Greystar, according to that firm's website. In August, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a proposed settle- ment with Greystar over allegations of participating in an algorithmic pricing scheme with other firms. Greystar agreed to a $50-million settlement in regards to a class action lawsuit from renters over the rent-fixing scheme, according to Reuters. e sale of Alta on the Row comes aer Wood Partner's sale of the 218- unit Alta Oxbow in Wayland for $98.7 million in August 2024. Wood Partners continues to own Alta French Hill, a 276-unit complex in Marlborough com- pleted in February. Alta on the Row received a 2025 tax assessment value of $33.94 million in 2025, according to City of Worcester property records. Worcester multi-family development Alta on the Row W