The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts • 39

D5 THE BOSTON GLOBE TUESDAY, AUGUST 8, 1999 Lechmere development plan drawing fire City officials say they knew little of Guilford, MBTA project Tweeter in joint venture to develop on-line store By Peter J.Howe GLOBE STAFF CAMBRIDGE Plans unveiled for a vast new neighborhood of homes and businesses near Lechmere Square have apparently gotten off to a bad start, with several city officials complaining yesterday they were stunned to learn of the plans from news reports. On Friday, Guilford Transportation Industries and the MBTA unveiled plans for a 50-acre redevelopment of largely abandoned railroad yards and warehouses across the Monsignor O'Brien Highway from the current Lechmere Green Line station. The project, likely to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, would include hundreds of apartments, parks, and 40 percent office and retail space. One city official said Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority officials said up to 3,000 housing units could be proposed, a number Guilford and the would not confirm. However, the few city officials who knew about the proposal before it came to light said their knowledge was limited to "heads-up" telephone calls before Guilford and the MBTA issued a news release describing the before the announcement Friday and said given the area's wretched traffic now, adding more "would be of major concern to us." Guilford officials said the was responsible for notifying Cambridge officials and laying political groundwork for the project.

But a senior official, who asked to remain anonymous, yesterday strongly denied that. John Nadolny, Guilford's senior vice president and general counsel, said, "You can't go to everybody in the world before you go out with these things." But he stressed that the proposal is "in its preliminary stages" and details of what would be built are still being proposed. Some city insiders said they do not rule out the possibility Guilford's real agenda was to get approval for a limited number of commercial and residential towers, so they proposed something much bigger in hopes of then being able to seemingly "negotiate down" to approvals for what they really want to build. "Let's just say we've seen that game before around here," said one senior city official who asked not to be named. Southeast, Texas, and Southern California markets, will provide Cyberian Outpost with vendor relationships.

"This is a terrific thing for both of us," Cyberian Outpost chief executive Daryl Peck said. "It allows us to increase revenue with a really insignificant financial investment." Interest in on-line consumer electronics retailing has soared since Amazon.com the Internet's leading bookseller added electronics to its growing list of products about two weeks ago. Consumer electronics has been targeted as one of the most potentially profitable on-line industries, said David Cooperstein, director of consumer e-commerce at Forrester Research in Cambridge. On-line sales of consumer electronics are expected to reach $411 million this year, according to Forrester. By 2003, those sales are projected to yield $6.1 billion.

"On-line sales industries need brick and mortar to appeal to the consumers who like to try their goods before they buy them," Cooperstein said. "It shouldn't take away anything from their in-store business. This is a case where one plus one equals 2 or three." As opposed to nonbrick-and-mor-tar operations, consumers using the Tweeter-Cyberian Outpost alliance will be able to go into a Tweeter store to see the products they want, and then order those exact products on line, Cooperstein said. Tweeter shares rose 116 to close at 33 on the Nasdaq stock exchange. Shares of Cyberian Outpost closed down 1116 to 10 116 on project only generally late Friday.

Besides the obvious hurdles the project faces winning zoning and environmental approvals, including probabe state environmental impact review, Guilford and officials have sorely tested the good will of city officials and community leaders whose support will be crucial. "It's such unmitigated arrogance," Cambridge City Councilor Katherine Triantafillou said of the surprise announcement. "I have a hard time imagining there could possibly be support for that much development in that part of the city. It seems too large, too much for East State Representative Timothy J. Toomey (D-Cambridge), who also serves on the City Council, said, "It was kind of a bolt out of the sky." Toomey also faulted the T's board of directors for approving a key land swap for the project during an executive session Thursday.

Under the deal Guilford will build a new Lechmere station, repair shop, and trolley yard on the east side of the O'Brien Highway for $100 million or more in exchange for rights to redevelop the current station site. "The fact that a project of this 'It's such unmitigated arrogance. I have a hard time imagining there could possibly be support for that much development in that part of the city. It seems too large, too much for East KATHERINE TRIANTAFILLOU, Cambridge city councilor size actually started with a behind-the-doors land swap with the MBTA really sends a very disturbing and troubling message to the neighborhood that's being affected," Toomey said. Susanne Rasmussen, the city's director of environmental and transportation planning, said, "We have a lot of questions, and we are looking to understand what's being proposed." Rasmussen said there was "no prior consultation with the city" By Heather Kamins GLOBE CORRESPONDENT Canton-based Tweeter Home Entertainment Group Inc.

has joined the popular move to Internet retailing, announcing a joint venture yesterday with Cyberian Outpost Inc. to create an on-line consumer electronics store. Tweeter plans to expand its mid-to high-range electronics business -which now includes home and car audio systems, portable audio equipment, large-screen televisions, and digital satellite systems sold in its 73 stores in 14 states through Cyberian Outpost's Internet experience, said Joe McGuire, Tweeter's chief financial officer. "We think this will complement our in-store sales," McGuire said. "We'll be able to reach existing customers and provide them with services they are not already getting." Tweeter also invested $1 million in Cyberian Outpost, an e-commerce superstore that until now has sold computer-related products on line.

McGuire said each company is expected to invest $4 million in the joint venture. Tweeter, which owns stores in the New England, Mid-Atlantic, 7.25 Fixed Rata East i West Mortgage 7.6 HRPT changes plans for health-care unit spinoff Cites slump in industry share prices APR Other Loan Programs (slightly higher rates) Ho Income Verification Zero Downpayment 5 down Ho P.U.I i 4 1 Problem Credit Considered Ho Points Ho Closing Costs Jumbo Mortgages up to $2 million Cash-out up to 125 of your home's value 10 firms join Allmerica to offer financial services BLOOMBERG NEWS BLOOMBERG NEWS Nofeaster-PIIllll tornado-P-lllll Humcane-PIIlll Lightning 100MHz ATX Motbrboard 100MHz ATX Mothrboard IOCMHj Micro-ATX Mtfirtcf TOMrtiAiXMomrtxara mmpo pr.tnfi sdram 64Meo PL 100 SUHAM 13 gig Quantum Hard Drive 13 Ouantum Hard Drive aZMeofWOObUHAM Hard Drive 15" monitor wbuffl-in SDkrs Custom SMAiivmeowrijitiv 15" monitor wbuitt-ffi spkrs b4Med rljlW SUnAM 8.4 Seagate Hard Drive 8rATIWdeowPC2TV 15' monitor wbufl-in spkrs 56K VoioeFamWodem DVD-Ill. Ensomc PCI Snd Win98. WordPerfect Suite UFfTIMf.laif Warranty UbH vrMooem nvn-ill Stt1Rler.l nwl vnl VOOOOO-III 1W1 Abf video 15fl monitor wbuitt-in spkrs 56K VoKSFax'Modem 40X-CD1SndBtstr-Uvel val Win9L WordPerfect Suite; UFUIMEIaoor Warranty'. 56K Modem.

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In addition, Senior Housing has arranged a $350 million line of credit. Immediately after the special dividend, Senior Housing will draw $200 million from the line and pay the proceed to HRPT, it said. After declining more than 21 percent last year, the Bloomberg REIT Index is down another 2.1 percent this year amid concerns about rising interest rates and slower earnings growth. HRPT's shares are up 1.34 percent this year. The Bloomberg Healthcare REIT Index has suffered even more, down 16.2 percent this year, amid additional concerns that proposed changes in Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement programs could lower revenue of health-care operators.

"We believe the taint of the health-care industry has caused our office buildings to be undervalued in the market," said Saini. More than half of HRPT's health-care properties are congregate care facilities leased to Marriott and Brookdale Living Communities which have little or no Medicare of Medicaid reimbursement programs, the company said. NEWTON HRPT Properties Trust said it canceled a plan to spin off its health-care property unit, with $770 million in assets, through an initial public offering and will instead distribute shares through a special dividend. The Newton office property real estate investment trust said the change was because of a slump in REIT share prices generally and health-care REITs in particular. HRPT had planned to raise $220 million through the IPO with most of the proceeds pegged for the purchase of 14 assisted-living centers from Marriott International Inc.

"There is no plan to purchase those facilities at this time," said Ajay Saini, treasurer of HRPT. The company's shares fell to 13 1316 in New York trading. HRPT said the revised plan means it will retain a higher-than-ex-pected 51 percent stake in the health-care unit, to be called Senior Housing Properties Trust, whose shares will trade on the New York Stock Exchange. Overall, HRPT has $3.2 billion in assets. Under the plan, existing HRPT shareholders will get one share in Senior Housing for every 10 shares of HRPT.

counting firms in recent years to gain more clients. "Firms two or three years down the road will look significantly different than they do today," said Capital Professional's president, Douglas Wright. Gordon Viere, chief executive of Larson Allen Weishair will be the group's chairman. Most of Capital Professional's firms contributed $100,000 to the new company. Allmerica put up more to have a 15 percent share, though Wright wouldn't specify how much more.

The firms won't share investment banking revenue. The investment banking units will operate as part of each firm except in certain states that don't allow CPAs to own these services. In that case, financial services will be offered separately, Wright said. Other firms in the group are: Eide Bailly LLP; Cherry Bekaert Holland LLP; Virchow Krause Parente Randolph Orlando Carey Associates; LeMaster Daniels PLLC; Robin, Brown, Gorn-stein and Kennedy Coe LLC. Allmerica shares rose 1 1316 to 61.

MINNEAPOLIS Ten medium-size accounting firms joined with Allmerica Financial Corp. to offer investment and insurance services to companies, the latest move by accountants to offer more financial advice. The firms established Capital Professional Advisors which will provide staff and other support. Allmerica will provide financial and insurance on a nonexclusive basis. The accountants range in size from the 17th-largest in the United States, Clifton Gunderson LLC, with $82 million in 1998 revenue, to the 65th-largest, Clark, Schaefer, Hack-ett which has $16.3 million in revenue.

Accounting firms have been extending services to become more competitive. The largest firms -KPMG International, Pricewater-houseCoopers, Ernst Young, De-loitte Touche, and Andersen Worldwide have set up separate finance divisions. 'In addition, public financial services companies, like Block Inq. and American Express Tax. and Business Services, have bought several small and midsize ac Buy a Set of Cobra Gravity Back Irons and get $70.00 worth of golf balls, FREE.

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