Media

Globe moving newsroom to 53 State St.

Paves way for sale of Morrissey Boulevard property

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The BOSTON GLOBE SAID ON THURSDAY it plans to shut down its sprawling offices on Morrissey Boulevard in Dorchester by the end of next year and move its news and business operations to two floors of 53 State St. downtown.

The Globe is already in the midst of moving its printing and delivery operations from Dorchester to Taunton, so once the two moves are completed the Morrissey Boulevard location will be empty and primed for redevelopment.

Michael Sheehan, the CEO of Boston Globe Media Partners, said the company will realize savings simply by shedding the Morrissey Boulevard location. “Morrissey Boulevard is a very expensive facility to maintain,” he said. “This will produce a material amount of money in savings.”

Sheehan also said the two moves mean he can now focus his attention on selling the Morrissey Boulevard property. A deal with Winstanley Development to purchase the facility fell through earlier this year.

The 53 State St. location is located across the street from the 60 State St. office building and a couple blocks away from City Hall and Faneuil Hall. It is also a short walk from Washington Street, where the Globe was located before moving to Dorchester in 1958.

The State Street building is a blend of old and new, the combination of the Boston Stock Exchange building from the late 1800s and a sleek, glass skyscraper. Sheehan said the newspaper will occupy about 75,000 square feet on the second and third floors. He said he was talking to the building’s owners about some sort of signage for the Globe on the outside of the building.

Sheehan said the move will be good for reporters and editors, who will no longer have to trek downtown to cover stories and meet sources. He said it will also help revitalize the newspaper.

“I honestly believe there is no greater opportunity  to redefine and transform the culture of the Boston Globe than to move to and work in the ideal location, right in the heart of the city, in an environment designed for the future of journalism,” he said in a letter to employees.

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Bruce Mohl

Editor, CommonWealth
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About Bruce Mohl

Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.

About Bruce Mohl

Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.

At its Taunton facility, the Globe is installing printing presses it purchased from Gannett Co. Sheehan said the presses are not new but “as state of the art as you can possibly do.” The Globe announced last week that early next year it would begin publishing the New England editions of USA Today, which is owned by Gannett.

In moving downtown, the Globe is following in the footsteps of its tabloid rival, the Boston Herald. The Herald sold its property on Harrison Avenue and moved its newsroom to the Seaport District. The Globe prints the Herald, along with several other newspapers, including the New York Times, the Enterprise of Brockton, and the Patriot Ledger.

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