MBTA Goes to Bid on Assembly Row Orange Line T Station

SOMERVILLE, Mass., May 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE: FRT) today announced that the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) submitted a notice to bidders for the construction of a new Orange Line T station for Assembly Row at Assembly Square.  The new station at Assembly Row will be the first to be built on the Orange line since the Southwest Corridor Stations in 1987 and will be located between Sullivan Square and Wellington Station.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20050907/DCW070LOGO )

"We are pleased that the MBTA went to bid on construction for the new Orange Line T station in Somerville.  This is the latest great step forward in the progress of this project and we look forward to seeing the bids that come back," said Don Briggs, president Federal Realty Investment Trust –Boston. "The vision of Assembly Row at Assembly Square cannot be realized without the Orange Line T station.  People from all over the Commonwealth are going to come to Assembly Row to work, shop, live and enjoy the parks and open space. A large number of them will rely on public transportation to get there."

The station is a cornerstone of Federal Realty's new mixed-use neighborhood in Somerville.  Complete with built-to-suit office and research and development space, residential units, parks and active urban streets with sidewalk cafes, retail shops, restaurants and entertainment venues, Assembly Row will be the largest new neighborhood in the Commonwealth since the Back Bay.

Construction of the new T could begin as soon as fall of 2011, with the potential to be online in 2014. Undoubtedly Massachusetts' largest development project, Assembly Row at Assembly Square will create more than 19,000 permanent jobs, over 21,000 construction jobs, and significant new revenue for the City of Somerville and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

"The opportunity to build a new neighborhood at Assembly Square is the opportunity to create good jobs, both permanent and temporary, to create new public parks and open spaces and a better place for people to work and live. The new T station is an integral part of that," Briggs went on to say.

For more information on Assembly Row, please visit www.assemblyrow.com.

About Assembly Row at Assembly Square

Assembly Row at Assembly Square is the next great Boston neighborhood. As proposed, this mixed use development will feature 1.75 million square feet of built-to-suit office/lab space, 2,100 residential units, a 200-room hotel, 880,000 square feet of retail, including a 60,000 square foot movie complex. In the heart of this neighborhood, active urban commercial streets will be interspersed with sidewalk cafes, parks, retail shops, restaurants, bike lines and entertainment venues. Located at the very center of Greater Boston, this new development will be accessible via Interstate 93 and with the newly planned Assembly Row T station, minutes to downtown Boston. Design your own future at Boston's next great neighborhood, Assembly Row at Assembly Square. For more information, please visit www.assemblyrow.com.

About Federal Realty

Federal Realty Investment Trust is an equity real estate investment trust specializing in the ownership, management, development, and redevelopment of high quality retail assets. Federal Realty's portfolio (excluding joint venture properties) contains approximately 18.3 million square feet located primarily in strategically selected metropolitan markets in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and California. In addition, the Trust has an ownership interest in approximately 1.0 million square feet of retail space through a joint venture in which the Trust has a 30% interest. Our operating portfolio (excluding joint venture properties) was 93.9% leased to national, regional, and local retailers as of December 31, 2010, with no single tenant accounting for more than approximately 2.6% of annualized base rent. Federal Realty has paid quarterly dividends to its shareholders continuously since its founding in 1962, and has increased its dividend rate for 43 consecutive years, the longest record in the REIT industry. Federal Realty is an S&P MidCap 400 company and its shares are traded on the NYSE under the symbol FRT.

SOURCE Federal Realty Investment Trust