First Potomac is continuing its office surge into DC, buying 1401 K St yesterday for $58M. Hours after the deal, the REIT's investment chief shared with us plans to add some "pizzazz" to the building. (An appropriate term, considering it was built during the Jazz Age.)
CIO Nick Smith (left, snapped yesterday with colleagues Pat Kelly and Michael Murillo) tells us the firm was attracted to the 117k SF building's smaller floor plates and historic status—it rose in 1929 as the first Art Deco specimen in the city. Nick says First Potomac plans to spruce up common areas. And with a big equity raise last year, as well as the sale of its industrial portfolio, the investment run might not be over: "We're going to continue to pursue opportunities where we see rent growth."
We snapped the building yesterday afternoon. (Imagine all the things this 85-year-old building has seen: streetcars, the disappearance of streetcars, the return of streetcars.) Another DC icon, DC Coast, occupies part of the ground-floor retail space. Bethesda-based Guardian Realty Investors was the seller, repped by Cushman's Eric Berkman and Steve Gichner.
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