the residences at the aquarium was built on the site of the former atlantic aquarium at 120 nantasket Avenue.

By Carol Britton Meyer

The owners of The Residences at the Aquarium condominium complex at the base of Atlantic Hill will sell all 21 units to an unnamed buyer at the beginning of February. The new owner plans to operate the building as a rental property, according to one of the current owners.

Enrique Darer, who co-owns the four-story property with Jonathan Leavitt, identified the buyer as a “big real estate owner who wants to purchase the whole building and rent it out as residential units,” but declined to provide the person’s name. He said they were approached last summer while the building was still being developed.

A certificate of occupancy is expected to be issued shortly, Darer told The Hull Times this week. Leavitt and Darer paid $1.45 million for the then two-story concrete block building at 120 Nantasket Avenue, which formerly housed the Atlantic Aquarium, in August 2022.

Their plan was to sell the units as condominiums. Prices ranged from $699,000 for a second-floor unit to $2.45 million for one of the penthouse residences.

“We had already sold three of the units to friends, who are agreeable to the [upcoming] sale,” Darer said.

After the offer was made on the property – which Darer did not disclose but said was a “good price” – it was taken off the market.

“We were hoping to close at the end of the year, but that didn’t happen, so it will be next month,” Darer said.

He and Leavitt were amenable to the sale “because if you sell [the entire building] to one buyer, only one sale is involved rather than our initial plan to sell 21 units with separate closings,” he said.

When asked if there were other reasons for the planned sale, Darer said there were not. “There is nothing mysterious about it,” he said.

The development is a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom units. The largest units are penthouses.

“They all have beautiful views facing the bay,” Darer said. Amenities include parking, a covered pool, and a gym. “It’s a fantastic building.”

These are among 4,000 residential units Darer said he has developed in Massachusetts, Vermont, Georgia, Florida, and New Hampshire throughout his career.

“This is my first project in Hull,” he said. “I fell in love with the location and the town, but if an opportunity comes around, I’m always game to do it!”

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