Owners Of NASA's Headquarters Land $275M Refinancing

The owner of NASA's longtime headquarters has secured a huge new debt package tied to the building that houses one of the largest federal government leases in the country.

A partnership of Hana Alternative Asset Management and Ocean West Capital Partners secured a $275M refinancing for 300 E St. SW, allowing the owners to recapitalize equity in the building and make debt-only payments until 2028, which is when NASA's lease expires.

NASA has occupied the building, known as Two Independence Square, since it was constructed in 1992, and renewed its lease in 2011.

The debt came from Chicago-based Mesirow, which describes itself as an independent, employee-owned financial services firm. The loan, which was brokered by Cushman & Wakefield, closed despite the rising interest rate environment, which has spurred a pullback in bank lending.

"Executing in today's debt markets presents a degree of challenge that we are proud to have met through close partnership and collaboration across several unique facets of the Mesirow franchise, including our muni desk and the more traditional CRE fixed income sales and trading channels," Mesirow Capital Markets President Nat Sager said in a statement. "We are extremely pleased by the end result."

Hana and Ocean West acquired the nearly 600K SF property for about $360M in 2017, according to property records. Ocean West serves as the property anchor.

The financing allows the owners to monetize the property, which has the sixth-largest General Services Administration lease in the country, according to a Mesirow press release.