Services
Commercial Build-Outs
Built to spec. Delivered on schedule.
Offices, restaurants, retail, medical, and hospitality, taken from a raw shell to the day you open.
5.0 ★★★★★ 14 Google reviewsWe take a raw shell, or a tired second-generation space, and hand it back finished and ready to open.
On a commercial job, the open date is the whole game. Whether you’re a tenant opening to customers or an owner building out your own space, every week of delay costs money. So permitting, long-lead equipment, and the building’s requirements all move in parallel from day one, not one at a time as they surface.
Boston adds its own friction. Larger projects can trigger Article 80 review, and construction hours run 7 to 6 on weekdays. We know which city rules apply to your space before we price the job.
We run all of it under one roof. Permitting, design, the full MEP, fire protection, finishes, and the building coordination, so the rules of the space never become your problem. Closeout is where loose jobs stall, so we schedule the inspections early and chase down the fire sign-off that gates your certificate of occupancy, and the space opens when you planned.
Scope of Work
What a commercial build-out includes
- Tenant fit-outs and white-box build-outs
- Restaurant, retail, and hospitality interiors
- Office and medical or dental build-outs
- Article 80 and permitting coordination
- Full MEP, fire protection, and life safety
- Landlord, COI, and building-management coordination
- Phased and after-hours work in occupied spaces
- Accessibility and code compliance
- Inspections and Certificate of Occupancy
- Final punch and turnover
How It Works
A clear path from first call to closeout
- 01Scope and pricingWe confirm use, code, and which city reviews apply, then price the full build-out.
- 02Permits and coordinationWe pull permits, clear the landlord’s requirements, and lock long-lead equipment, all running at once.
- 03Build to the open dateWe run the schedule against your open date, phasing work around operations where needed.
- 04Inspections and handoverWe line up every inspection and the fire sign-off so the certificate of occupancy lands on time.
Questions, Answered
Frequently asked
What types of commercial spaces does Cityside build out?
Offices, retail, restaurants, medical and dental, hospitality, and gyms, across Boston and the surrounding suburbs. We take spaces from a raw shell or a second-generation interior to a finished, occupied space.
Can you deliver a commercial build-out on a fixed open date?
Yes. We build to a hard open date and protect it, running permitting, long-lead equipment, MEP, finishes, inspections, and the landlord’s requirements in parallel so nothing stalls the opening.
Will my project need Article 80 review?
It depends on size. Boston’s Small Project Review generally starts around 20,000 square feet of new floor area or 15 residential units, and Large Project Review at 50,000. Most fit-outs fall under those thresholds, but a change of use or an expansion can pull you in. We confirm where your project lands before we price it.
Can you work after hours or in an occupied building?
Yes. Boston’s standard construction hours run 7 to 6 on weekdays, and we get the approvals for work outside that when a retail block, an office floor, or a neighboring restaurant needs it. We phase the disruptive work around your operations and your neighbors.
Do you work with our architect and designer?
If you’ve got an architect and a designer, we work with them. If you don’t, we bring in our own.
Who handles the landlord coordination and the certificate of occupancy?
We do. Certificates of insurance, building rules, loading and elevator access, and the inspection sequence all run through us. The certificate of occupancy depends on building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical, accessibility, health, and fire sign-offs, and the Boston Fire Department gates it, so we line those up early.
Does a commercial build-out have to comply with BERDO?
BERDO, Boston’s Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance, is the building owner’s obligation, not your fit-out’s. It covers buildings 20,000 square feet or larger or with 15 or more units, and a build-out doesn’t trigger it on its own. If your space sits in a BERDO-covered building, we can build it to support the owner’s energy and emissions targets, with efficient electric systems, better insulation, and a tighter envelope. We’ll tell you where the building stands before we price the work.
Are you licensed and insured?
Yes. Cityside Construction is a fully licensed and insured Boston general contractor, holding Massachusetts HIC #216577 and CSL #CS-122098.
