Forest Ridge Office Park
Forest Ridge Office Park
| Address | 85 Rangeway Rd |
| Built | 1988 |
| Other Lot Structures |
J. Douge House (1852 -
1987)
Forest Ridge (Built 1988) |
Forest Ridge, also called Forest Ridge Office Park and Forest Ridge Business Park, is a campus of three two-story brick office buildings at 85 Rangeway Road in North Billerica, built about 1988 on 19.1 acres near Route 3. The buildings have about 50,000 square feet each, about 150,000 square feet in all, used for offices, flex space and laboratories.
The land was the farm of the Dows family. In 1835 Joseph Dows deeded his son Joseph Dows Jr. eighty acres "on the Rangeway road so called," running to the Chelmsford line, "with the buildings thereon standing," along with about one hundred acres on the road toward Benjamin Frost's and three smaller lots. The son gave his father a $1,600 bond to pay his brothers and sisters their shares. The house appears on the 1853 Walling map, where the owner's name is printed "J. Douge." Joseph Dows Jr. died in 1863. His will left $1,000 and three pews to the First Baptist Society in Billerica and the rest of his estate to his brothers and sisters, and in 1864 they sold the 130 acres, "being the homestead of the late Joseph Dows," to John Pasho for $2,800.
As "the Pasho farm" it passed by 1890 to Nellie L. Gay, who sold 46.74 acres to Coatney Faulcon in 1891 and the rest in 1892 to May W. Messiah of Boston. Her mortgage to the Lowell Co-operative Bank was foreclosed, and in 1897 the bank sold the farm at auction to William W. Morse of Lowell, who resold it the same day to Boghos B. Mantarian and Altoon M. and Hagop Magarian. The Magarians sold it in 1903 to the Dadean family of Salem, and in 1910 Hovennes and Aries H. Dadean sold it to Arakel Arakelian. The farm stayed with the Arakelian family for seventy years. Arakel deeded it to his wife Mary in 1922, and in 1929 it went to their children, among them Walter W. Arakelian, a member of the School Committee and treasurer of the excavating firm [[Arakelian & Jones]] on Rangeway Road, and Morris (Maurice) Arakelian, who served on the Planning Board.
In 1981 the Arakelian heirs sold the land, Lots 2, 2A, 2B and 2C of a 1979 plan, to Accutest Corporation of Chelmsford. The 1981 survey by Harry R. Feldman, Inc. (Plan Book 135, Plan 19) shows the 832,137-square-foot lot between Rangeway Road and Old Rangeway Road, bounded on two sides by the state forest of the Massachusetts Department of Conservation, the Warren H. Manning State Forest. Accutest sold it to the Fairchild Camera & Instrument Corporation in 1983 for $1,500,000. In October 1986 Fairchild Semiconductor sold it for $1,900,000 to the Forest Ridge Nominee Trust, formed by developers associated with The Norwood Group of Bedford, New Hampshire, which built the three buildings with a construction loan from Old Stone Bank of Providence. The old Dows farmhouse was taken down in 1987. In 1990 the trustees deeded the park to Old Stone Bank in lieu of foreclosure. The bank failed, and in 1995 the Resolution Trust Corporation, as its receiver, sold the park for $1,116,750 to Forest Ridge Realty Corp. of Worcester, which still owns it; recent leasing reports name the landlord as K&L Realty.
The park's tenants have mostly been small technology firms. The town's tax books list Venture Technologies (2003-2016), Mutech (2003-2008), Bright Horizons (2003-2006), K2 Engineering Services (2005-2020), Award Productions (2005-2014), RF Integration (from 2008), Harvest Automation, a robotics company (2011-2022), NTP Software (2011), Schneider Electric (2011-2014), Integra LifeSciences (from 2016), Ursa Navigation Solutions (2016-2020), Noise Control Engineering (from 2019) and Tertill (2023). Later leases went to Meta Materials, ATE Systems and Worldwide TechServices (2024). Others have included engineering and software firms, cable and utility contractors, film and video producers, a cleaning franchise and a cafe.
References
- Billerica assessor, 85 Rangeway Rd (parcel 21-1-0): 19.1 acres, office buildings about 1988, plan 135-19 "Forest Ridge"
- Banker & Tradesman, June 2, 2011: three leases at Forest Ridge Office Park, 85 Rangeway Road (NTP Software, Harvest Automation, Award Productions)
- NEREJ: Forest Ridge, a three-building campus of 150,000 s/f of office, flex and lab space; leases to Meta Materials, ATE Systems, Worldwide Tech Services
Title References
| Date | Type | Grantor | Grantee | Summary | Recorded |
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| June 4, 1845 | Deed | Joseph Dows of Billerica, yeoman | His son Joseph Dows Junior of Billerica | Joseph Dows to his son Joseph Jr., the homestead with the buildings, 1835 | 461/422 (South) |
Billerica town book 17, pages 589-591. Signed April 3, 1835, acknowledged Sept. 24, 1835 (witnesses Jona. S. Bowers, Amos Spalding), recorded June 4, 1845, for $800, five tracts: the first beginning at a maple tree "on the Rangeway road so called" by William Pollard, to the wall "on Chelmsford line," by the widow Foster, John Baldwin and William Manning back to the Rangeway road, "containing by estimation eighty acres ... with the buildings thereon standing"; the second, about one hundred acres from the Rangeway road along "the road leading to Benjamin Frosts" by Joshua Bennett, Charles Cutler, Manning, Nathaniel Stearns and "the great road," to "the corner of the farm by Dix's house"; and the Adams lot (6 acres, on the turnpike), the Sprake lot (5 acres) and the Mock meadow (3 1/2 acres). A mortgage back to the father (Book 461, Page 425) secured the $1,600 bond named in his will.
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| 1847 | Will | Joseph Dows of Billerica (will signed Feb. 29, 1836) | His son Joseph Dows (executor) and his other children | will of Joseph Dows Sr., 1836/1847 | Probate #30836 |
Will signed Feb. 29, 1836 (witnesses Amos Spalding, Jedediah W. Sargent, Edward Spaulding), probated 1847. To his wife Mary the household furniture, in lieu of dower in "The Chelmsford Lot" of about 40 acres, which went to his daughters Sally Stearns, Judith Newman, Orpha Blodget, Olive, Melinda Bolton and Mary Brown. To his son Joseph the stock and farming utensils, without affecting "a certain bond in the penal sum of Sixteen hundred dollars given to me by said Joseph, my son, or the mortgage deed of even date therewith": the father had already deeded the farm to Joseph, who was to pay his brothers and sisters Amos, Eliza Ann, Elbridge, Emeline P., Calvin, Harriet and Gustavus. If Joseph died without issue "so that the homestead farm shall revert to me," it was to go to son Elbridge.
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| 1863 | Will | Joseph Dows of Billerica | His widow, Maria A. Dows, and his brothers and sisters | will of Joseph Dows, 1863: the Dows homestead | Probate #30837 |
Middlesex probate case 30837, 62 pages; the will was proved at Groton on September 22, 1863. Joseph Dows of Billerica leaves his wife Maria A. Dows the household furniture, $2,000 and the income of $5,000 for life; $100 to his nephew Joseph Dows, son of Gustavus D. Dows; $100 to his niece Elvira Pierce, wife of Orrin Pierce; $50 to his half sister Marinda Bolton; his three pews and, after his wife's death, $1,000 to the First Baptist Society in Billerica; and, after debts, an iron fence around his cemetery lot and a monument "for myself and son", "the remainder of my Estate, Real, Personal or mixed" to "my brothers and sisters, Eliza Ann Bowers, wife of Henry Bowers, Emeline P. Mills wife of John R. Mills, Calvin Dows, Amos W. Dows, Gustavus D. Dows". They and the widow sold the woodland of his farm on the Rangeway Road to William P. Webster at the end of 1863.
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| June 8, 1864 | Deed | Amos W. Dows of Lowell, Henry and Eliza A. Bowers, John R. and Emeline Mills, Maria A. Dows (widow), Calvin Dows and Gustavus D. Dows | John Pasho of Billerica | the Dows homestead sold to John Pasho, 1864 | 39/104 |
Signed June 4, 1864, for $2,800, "a certain piece of land situate in said Billerica containing one hundred and thirty acres," from the northeast corner "on the road leading from Billerica to Chelmsford at land of Elijah Corlis," westerly 637 feet "to the range way road," by the Manning farm, "Col. Baldwins land," land "conveyed by us to W. P. Webster," the town way from the Rangeway road to the Boston and Lowell road, "the Bennet land so called," Anthony Jones, Silas Cowdry and Corlis, "being the homestead of the late Joseph Dows." The sellers kept possession until Dec. 1, 1864, and buyers of standing wood could cut it until April 1, 1865.
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| March 23, 1892 | Deed | Nellie L. Gay of Billerica, in her own right, with her husband George R. Gay | May W. Messiah of Boston, wife of Henry A. Messiah | the Pasho farm to May W. Messiah, 1892 | 231/455 |
Signed March 15, 1892, for "One Dollar and other valuable consideration," "a certain farm situated in said Billerica called and known as the Pasho farm," the premises conveyed to Nellie L. Gay by John H. Downing and his wife by deed of Dec. 5, 1890 (Book 221, Page 534) "together with the buildings thereon," and described in a deed to John Pasho of June 4, 1864, excepting the part sold to Coatney Faulcon on July 1, 1891 (Book 225, Page 12), and subject to a $1,500 mortgage held by Geo. R. Fowler of Boston, which the buyer assumed. A mortgage back to Gay for $1,000 follows on the same page.
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| July 13, 1894 | Mortgage | May W. Messiah of Billerica, in her own right, with her husband Henry A. Messiah | Lowell Co-operative Bank | Messiah mortgage, 1894 | 255/41 |
For $1,500 (eight shares of the bank's nineteenth series pledged), "a certain tract of land containing about one hundred and thirty acres" in Billerica, beginning "on the road leading from Billerica to Chelmsford at land now or late of Elijah Corlis," thence 637 feet "to the rangeway road," by the Manning farm, Col. Baldwin, W. P. Webster, the town way to the Boston and Lowell road, Bennett, Anthony Jones, Silas Cowdrey and Corlis, saving the 46 74/100 acres sold by Nellie L. Gay to Coatney Falcon in 1891. "Being the same premises to me conveyed by Nellie L. Gay by her deed dated March 15, 1892 ... Book 231 Page 455." Foreclosed in 1897.
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| October 19, 1897 | Mortgagee's Deed | Lowell Co-operative Bank, mortgagee of May W. Messiah | William W. Morse of Lowell | foreclosure sale to William W. Morse, 1897 | 291/423 |
Dated Oct. 2, 1897. After default on the Messiah mortgage of July 13, 1894 (Book 255, Page 41), notice and a public auction in Billerica, the bank (Artemas B. Woodworth, president; George W. Batchelder, treasurer) sold to Morse for $1,570 "a certain tract of land with the buildings thereon" with the same bounds, saving the 46 74/100 acres conveyed to Coatney Falcon in 1891, subject to taxes.
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| October 19, 1897 | Warranty Deed | William W. Morse of Lowell, unmarried | Boghos B. Mantarian of Woonsocket, R.I. (one half), and Altoon M. Magarian and Hagop Magarian of Westford (one fourth each) | Morse to Mantarian and the Magarians, 1897 | 291/429 |
Signed Oct. 19, 1897, the day the bank's deed to him was recorded, for "One Dollar and other good and valuable considerations," "a certain tract or parcel of land with the buildings thereon" in Billerica, bounded from the road to Chelmsford at Elisha Corlis to "the rangeway road," the Manning farm, Col. Baldwin, W. P. Webster, the town way to the Boston and Lowell road, Bennett, Anthony Jones and Silas Cowdrey, saving the 46 74/100 acres conveyed to Coatney Falcon; "said grantor reserving to himself the right to gather whatever crops may be growing thereon." The buyers mortgaged it back to Morse (Book 291, Page 434). The farm passed to Armenian immigrant families.
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| August 4, 1903 | Deed | Mosek G. Magarian and his wife Alton M. Magarian of Billerica | Hovennes Dadean, Garabed H. Dadean, Aries H. Dadean and Boghas G. Dadean of Salem | the farm to the Dadean family, 1903 | 357/114 |
For one dollar, "a certain tract or parcel of land with the buildings thereon" in Billerica, beginning on "the road leading from Billerica to Chelmsford at land now or formerly of Elisha Corlis," then 637 feet westerly by the road "to the Rangeway Road," southerly to the corner of "the Manning Farm," by the Manning Farm, land of Col. Baldwin and W. P. Webster back to the Rangeway Road, southerly to "a town way leading from said Rangeway Road to the Boston and Lowell Road," and by land of Bennett, Anthony Jones, Silas Condrey and Corliss to the start. "Being the premises conveyed by William W. Morse to Boghas B. Mantarian, Alton M. Magarian and Hagop Magarian by his deed dated October 19th, A.D. 1897" (Book 291, Page 429), with the shares deeded to Mosek by Hagop G. Magarian (Book 338, Page 16) and by Boghos B. Mantarian in 1899 (Book 312, Page 379).
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| August 12, 1910 | Deed | Hovennes Dadean and Aries H. Dadean of Billerica | Arakel Arakelian of Lowell | the farm to Arakel Arakelian, 1910 | 454/565 |
For "One Dollar and other considerations," the same tract "with the buildings thereon," bounded as in 1903 from the road to Chelmsford at Elisha Corlis to the Rangeway road, the Manning farm, Col. Baldwin, W. P. Webster, the town way to the Boston and Lowell road, Bennett, Anthony Jones, Silas Condrey and Corliss. "The same premises described in the deed of Mosek G. Magarian et al to Hovennes Dadean, Garabed H. Dadean and Aries H. Dadean and Boghas G. Dadean dated August 4, 1903 ... Book 357, Page 114," Hovennes and Aries having bought out Garabed and Boghas (Book 421, Page 233). Arakelian gave back a mortgage to Askie Garabedian (Book 454, Page 567), discharged in 1911.
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| May 10, 1922 | Deed | Arakel Arakelian of Billerica (his wife Mary releasing dower) | E. Gaston Campbell of Lowell | Arakelian farm, straw deed, 1922 | 660/505 |
Warranty deed, "for consideration paid," of "a certain tract or parcel of land with the buildings thereon," the same farm on the road to Chelmsford and the Rangeway road. "Being the same premises to me conveyed by Hovannes Dadian et al by their deed dated August 11, 1910 ... Book 454, Page 565." The first half of a straw transfer to his wife.
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| May 10, 1922 | Quitclaim Deed | E. Gaston Campbell of Lowell (his wife Idola releasing) | Mary Arakelian | the farm to Mary Arakelian, 1922 | 660/506 |
Recorded a minute after the deed to him, the same tract "with the buildings thereon," with quitclaim covenants. "Being the same premises to me conveyed by Arakel Arakelian, by his deed of even date herewith," so that the farm passed from Arakel Arakelian to his wife Mary.
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| December 16, 1929 | Warranty Deed | Ovan Arakelian of North Attleboro, unmarried | Mariam, Sarah, Josephine, Susie, Veronica, Walter, Esther and Morris Arakelian, all of Billerica | Ovan Arakelian to the Arakelian children, 1929 | 785/68 |
Signed March 21, 1929, "for consideration paid," with warranty covenants, "a certain tract or parcel of land with the buildings thereon," the Arakelian farm with the same bounds (the road from Billerica to Chelmsford at Elisha Corliss, the Rangeway road, the Manning Farm, Col. Baldwin, W. P. Webster, the town way to the Boston and Lowell Road, Bennett, Anthony Jones, Silas Condrey, Corliss), "subject to all incumbrances ... also subject to all outstanding mortgages." Ovan had taken title from Mary Arakelian in 1922 (Book 668, Page 371). The 1981 deed of the farm cites this deed as the family's title.
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| October 13, 1981 | Deed | Susie Keosayian, Veronica Jones, Esther Noble, Sarah Markarian, Morris Arakelian, and Walter W. and Mary P. Arakelian | Accutest Corporation of Chelmsford | Arakelian heirs to Accutest Corporation, 1981 | 2504/639 |
Executed Oct. 13, 1981, with quitclaim covenants, "the land in Billerica ... shown as Lots 2, 2A, 2B and 2C on the 'Plan of Land Located in Billerica Mass. Prepared for Arakelian et al'" of May 11, 1979, revised Oct. 30, 1980, by Nysten Engineering & Associates, "and also as shown on the plan of Harry R. Feldman, Inc." (Plan Book 135, Plan 19). For title: the 1929 deed of Ovan Arakelian (Book 785, Page 68), the estates of Miriam Arakelian Garabedian (probate 360720) and Josephine W. Bazarian (probate 413143), a 1967 deed of Kegham Bazarian (Book 1784, Page 203), and for Lot 2B a 1949 deed (Book 1115, Page 238). The heirs of the Arakelian farm, some by then of New York, Indiana and Chelmsford.
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| August 29, 1983 | Quitclaim Deed | Accutest Corporation, 25 Industrial Drive, Chelmsford | Fairchild Camera & Instrument Corporation, a Delaware company of Mountain View, Calif. | Accutest to Fairchild Camera & Instrument, 1983 | 2645/731 |
For $1,500,000, "the land with the buildings and improvements thereon" shown on the "Plan of Land, Billerica, Mass." of Aug. 24, 1981 by Harry R. Feldman (Plan Book 135, Page 19), 832,137 square feet, subject to takings by the Commonwealth (Book 1242, Page 541 and Book 1442, Page 277) and by the County Commissioners (Book 734, Page 236) and an order of conditions (Book 2508, Page 652). "The same premises conveyed to grantor by deed dated October 13, 1981 ... Book 2504, Page 639." Stamps cancelled Aug. 29, 1983.
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| October 17, 1986 | Quitclaim Deed | Fairchild Semiconductor Corporation, formerly Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corporation, of Cupertino, Calif. | The trustees of Forest Ridge Nominee Trust (c/o The Norwood Group, Bedford, N.H.) | Fairchild to Forest Ridge Nominee Trust, the developers, 1986 | 3742/126 |
For $1,900,000, "the land with the buildings and improvements thereon" on Plan Book 135, Page 19, 832,137 square feet, subject to the order of conditions of Book 2508, Page 652 and a new order recorded in October 1986. "The same premises conveyed to grantor by deed of ACCUTEST CORPORATION dated August 26, 1985 [for 1983] ... Book 2645, Page 731." The trust, created Oct. 16, 1986, built the three Forest Ridge office buildings, finished about 1988, with a construction mortgage of Dec. 17, 1986 (Book 3836, Page 290).
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| November 26, 1990 | Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure | The trustees of Forest Ridge Nominee Trust | Old Stone Bank, a Federal Savings Bank, of Providence, R.I. | deed in lieu of foreclosure to Old Stone Bank, 1990 | 5389/341 |
Dated Nov. 20, 1990, for "ONE DOLLAR ($1.00)," the Forest Ridge property on Rangeway Road, "subject to ... that certain Construction Mortgage and Security Agreement dated December 17, 1986 ... Book 3836, Page 290," as amended (Book 4955, Page 60), and a second mortgage of Nov. 3, 1989 (Book 5061, Page 228), with "no merger of the First Mortgage or the Second Mortgage": the developers handed the park to their lender. "For Grantor's title, see deed from Fairchild Semiconducter Corporation dated October 16, 1986 ... Book 3742, Page 126."
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| July 7, 1995 | Quitclaim Deed | Resolution Trust Corporation, as receiver of Old Stone Federal Savings Bank | Forest Ridge Realty Corp. of Worcester | RTC to Forest Ridge Realty Corp., 1995 (present owner) | 7548/76 |
RTC Massachusetts quitclaim deed dated June 30, 1995, for $1,116,750, "all the real property located in 85 Rangeway Road, Billerica": the lot "marked 832,137 sq. ft. = 19.103 acres on a Plan entitled 'Plan of Land in Billerica, Mass.', dated August 24, 1981, by Harry R. Feldman, Inc." (Plan Book 135, Plan 19). "For Grantor's title, see deed to Old Stone Bank ... dated November 20, 1990 ... Book 5389, Page 341." The bank had failed and was in federal receivership. Forest Ridge Realty Corp. is the present owner (assessor parcel 21-1-0).
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Recorded is Book/Page at the Middlesex North Registry of Deeds unless noted; Probate # is a Middlesex probate case, Ctf a Land Court certificate of title.