Washington, D.C.’s Bank Building Has Been Restored To Its Former Glory — With A Modern Twist

As nearly 90% of companies say they will be back to the office next year, employers across the nation are demanding trophy office space to cater to the needs and wishes of their returning employees. 

In Washington, D.C., trophy office assets have outshined other office types, with downtown neighborhoods such as the East End and NoMa ranking as the most desirable among prospective tenants.

In the heart of the East End, a section of downtown D.C. filled with high-end hotels, restaurants, shopping and office buildings, Lincoln Property Co. has developed a new class-A office tower, The Bank Building at 699 14th St. NW, that pairs tradition with modernity. 

“This was one of the last remaining ground-up development sites available so close to the White House and Metro Center in downtown D.C.,” said Adam Biberaj, senior vice president and managing director of Lincoln Property Co.’s D.C. leasing team. “We're very proud to have had the opportunity to work on it.”

Located a block away from the White House and Metro Center, The Bank Building is centrally positioned in the heart of the East End neighborhood. The property consists of the 97-year-old historic banking hall, formerly known as The National Bank of Washington, in addition to the adjoining, newly constructed office tower. The 164K SF office building stands 11 stories tall.

Biberaj said the historic banking hall will also be home to three new restaurants by The Group NYC: La Grande Boucherie, Washoku Room and Olio e Piu. The restaurants are expected to open for business in the first quarter.

“We've placed a significant emphasis on delivering destination restaurant space here at The Bank Building while also making sure that we embraced and celebrated the historic nature of the building,” he said. “Lincoln Property Co. placed a significant level of focus on creating a retail environment that would be an extension of the office tower.”

Biberaj said that the team wanted to make sure that it was not only delivering a first-class, trophy-level experience at the building but also creating an exciting environment for tenants to enjoy their time at the building. The Lincoln team finds that creative food and beverage, outdoor spaces and natural light are office features that prospective tenants are seeking.

Though historic building restorations are a more nuanced process than starting fresh, as a global, full-service CRE firm with roots as a developer, owner, investor and manager, Lincoln understood the significance of preserving this asset in the D.C. market. In conjunction with the Historic Preservation Office, Shalom Baranes Associates and the development team at Lincoln, the banking hall has been completely restored.

“We wanted to restore as many original features as possible,” Biberaj said. “It took a significant amount of diligence on the construction and development team to ensure we were doing the right thing by the property and following through and executing on the plan.”

The firm worked to incorporate features from the old banking hall into the new design, including the original bank vault, the arched windows and the lobby’s chandelier. The limestone facade was also restored to its former glory. 

Other amenities at The Bank Building include three rooftop terraces, conference and catering facilities, smart building technology, a bike storage room, on-site parking and balconies on each floor of the office tower. 

“We find that tenants are very interested in giving their employees an area to gather outdoors where they can host private events for clients and visitors,” said Merrill Turnbull, senior vice president and managing director at Lincoln Property Co. “Every floor of this property has access to outdoor space with Juliette balconies along with three large terraces. On the rooftop, we’ve delivered a conference and event space to accommodate for tenant meetings as well."

Turnbull said the team added a glass wall doorway in the rooftop conference center that can completely open to provide an indoor-outdoor environment, acting as an easy transition for after-conference socializing, collaborating or for an outdoor cocktail hour. The outdoor terrace space is also equipped with natural gas fire pits, seating and gender-neutral restrooms, he said.

Contributing to the amenity package is a fully equipped fitness facility with locker rooms and towel service.

“During the deconstruction of The Bank Building, we were able to preserve and restore features of the old structure and incorporate them into the new tower to tie the building together quite nicely,” Turnbull said. “Within the fitness center, coined The Boiler Room due to it being in the same place where the original building boilers were located, the team was able to restore the large boiler face plates and mount them within the fitness center as a unique detail.”

Several floors in the office tower are already leased by Fortune 500 tenants such as Accenture and Intuit. About 60% of the office space is leased, with a few full floors totaling about 70K SF remaining. 

“The Bank Building is affecting the fabric of the downtown in a very positive way,” Biberaj said. “The addition of a new trophy building, combined with the opening of the three new destination restaurants, further intensify the quality of the neighborhood.”

This article was produced in collaboration between Lincoln Property Co. and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.