An arm of the global lending group The J. Safra Group has acquired Faneuil Hall Marketplace from Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp., whose management of the iconic property under a lease with the city has long drawn complaints from tenants and public officials.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed in a press release late Monday. Made up of banks worldwide operating under the J. Safra name, the buyer manages more than $300 billion in assets ranging from the Gherkin tower in London to banana grower Chiquita Brands International Inc.
New York-based Ashkenazy had bought the long-term ground lease for the marketplace from General Growth Properties in 2011. Faneuil Hall Marketplace consists of the dozens of shops and restaurants that have been a top tourism draw for Boston for decades, not the historic building directly across from City Hall that serves as a meeting hall and museum.
Ashkenazy’s relationship with the city has been a fraught one through the tenures of multiple mayors. The landlord operates the property under a 99-year ground lease, giving the city little in the way of leverage to force changes. Most recently, the Wu administration identified Faneuil Hall as a key element in its drive to revitalize downtown post-pandemic, calling for a “more authentic” destination with more locally owned businesses, rather than national chains, and lamenting the "significant deferred investment" in keeping up the property.
Tenants have also griped about Ashkenazy at points in recent years, including last year, when the organization Lawyers for Civil Rights sent a demand letter calling out the landlord for what it called unfair treatment of shopkeepers of color.
