Cummings Center Leases-Up One Millionth Square Foot Ives Development to Join Cummings Properties at "The Shoe".

BEVERLY, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 2, 1998--Two years after undertaking one of the largest historically significant industrial revitalization projects in the country, Cummings Properties announces the lease-up of the one millionth square foot of space in Cummings Center, to its newest tenant, Ives Development, Inc. Affectionately known as "The Shoe," the newly-renovated 1.4 million-square foot Cummings Center was built 95 years ago as headquarters of the United Shoe Machinery Corp. (USM), but has been transformed over the past two years into a modernized office and research park.

"We're thrilled to have taken on restoration of The Shoe. Not only have we preserved a significant piece of New England and national architectural and industrial history for the new age, but we have also created a state-of-the-art home to companies like Ives Development," said Bill Cummings, founder, chairman and CEO of Woburn-based Cummings Properties.

Ives Development, Inc., a Massachusetts-based software company specializing in application development tools, is leasing 10,700 square feet of space. "Ives Development is excited about our move to Cummings Center. It's great space, and it is located where we want to be, in a revitalized downtown close to major public and private transportation links," said Nigel Cheshire, CEO of Ives Development. Other Cummings Center tenants include bankers, lawyers, high-tech industries, research and development firms, graphics and design businesses, small creative companies, restaurants, a bagel shop, and even an 800-member church. To date, the revitalization of The Shoe has generated over 3,500 jobs and much-needed tax dollars for

Beverly, long considered a company town centered around the United Shoe Machinery Corp. Pulitzer Prize winning architecture critic, Ada Louise Huxtable, praised Cummings Properties in a review of the renovation project, "Because the risk-reward factor of this conversion was enormous, it was no undertaking for the fainthearted. Mr. Cummings has an appetite for challenges. In the end, there were small losses and enormous gains. For The Shoe it has been a miraculous rebirth. This is more than a success story; it is a dream come true."

Architectural historians consider The Shoe one of the country's most significant industrial landmarks. Designed and built by Ernest L. Ransome, who devised and patented reinforced concrete buildings, The Shoe was one of the first examples of this revolutionary technique, as well as of the glass curtain wall construction method. For the first 40 years of its existence, the facility was the largest reinforced concrete structure in the world. The complex has been nominated for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.

In its long history The Shoe has been home to internationally important innovation - during USM's occupancy, over 9,000 patents were developed at the complex, including military weaponry used in two world wars, the hot glue gun, the soda can pop-top, the drive mechanism for the lunar module, and the pop rivet. Today, the Center encourages innovative small companies to continue that tradition.

Corporate Background

Cummings Properties is a full-service real estate and property management organization serving Greater Boston. From its beginnings in 1970, the company has grown to include 64 commercial buildings with luxury office space, wide bay assembly areas, cube warehouse properties, and research and development laboratories. Residential projects have included single family homes, luxury condominiums, and assisted living facilities. Cummings Properties is headquartered in Woburn, Mass. and has a team of 375 full-time employees.