DC's Biggest Lease Ever--Covering 620,000 SF--Is Signed and Sealed

ARLINGTON, VA-Waterview–the one-million-sf mixed-use project being developed in the popular Rosslyn submarket by a joint venture involving JBG Cos., Trizec Properties Inc. and CIM Group–secures a single tenant for the property, but that single tenant is all it will need. The Corporate Executive Board Co. has signed on to occupy the entire 620,000-sf office portion of the development under a 20-year lease. The agreement marks the largest leasing deal of all time in the Greater Washington, DC area. Financial details of the landmark transaction have not been released; however, class A office space in the Rosslyn/Ballston Corridor goes for an average $31 per-sf, according to Advantis Real Estate Services Co.’s Third Quarter 2004 Office Market Report.

A provider of business research and analysis, CEB will relocate its growing staff of 1,200 employees that are currently housed in four different locations throughout Washington, DC. With CEB’s lease, construction of the $227 million project is now scheduled to begin in January.

Waterview’s location on over two acres near the Key Bridge is an enviable one with easy access to the District via the bridge and to points beyond by means of Interstate 66, Lee Highway and ultimately, a new Metro station right at the property’s front doors. Upon its completion, scheduled for mid-2007, Waterview will provide a live-work community that will include the 24-story office tower, and a 28-story building featuring an upscale 170-unit residential condominium component and a 155-room boutique hotel segment. The architectural firm of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners has fashioned a design that will feature a terrace, highlighted by a restaurant, that will link the two structures.

“We have always been very excited about the potential of Rosslyn–its access to Downtown, mass transit and major commuting routes are excellent–and in particular, the role Waterview could play in the area’s revitalization,” says the JBG Cos. managing partner Michael Glosserman. “We’ve spent a great amount of time and energy making this project a reality and to have these efforts validated by an organization such as the Corporate Executive Board is very gratifying.”

Meany & Oliver Cos.’ Sharon M. Oliver, Paul Schulman of Trizec Properties and Jones Lang LaSalle’s Michael Ellis represented the owners in the deal, while CEB relied on the assistance of Cushman and Wakefield’s Audrey Zale Cramer and Louis Christopher.

For CEB, the impending relocation not only allows it to consolidate its existing offices, it will provide the company with the opportunity to accommodate an expected growth spurt.

The company is planning 2,500 new hires. “The problem with the search for space was that CEB is such a quickly growing entity and there were few options,” Cramer tells GlobeSt.com. “We performed massive market studies and there were very few locations that were very good, but Waterview was excellent.”

In addition to the space demands, Cramer notes that CEB also has a “definite recruitment profile” focused on young graduates of high-intelligence, so a large, well-educated labor pool had to be available in the immediate area of the office facility. Waterview met all requirements.