The Boston Athletic Association has bought an office building in Hopkinton just yards from the Boston Marathon starting line.

The MetroWest Daily News cites registry of deeds records to report that the organizer of the Boston Marathon closed on the building last month for $1.2 million.

The BAA has been leasing space in the building since 1996.

BAA Executive Director Thomas Grilk says buying the building outright made sense and strengthens the organization's ties to town.

Other tenants are being allowed to stay for now, and there are no immediate plans to change what the BAA does at the site. He says the building gives the organization flexibility and the option to add more staff in the future.