WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA), a fully integrated real estate investment trust focused primarily on the acquisition, development and management of Class A commercial properties leased to the U.S. Government, announced today that it has closed on the acquisition of a 71,100-square foot Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building in Albuquerque, NM.
The ICE - Albuquerque building is a built-to-suit facility completed in 2011, and is leased to the General Services Administration on behalf of Immigration and Customs Enforcement until January of 2027. ICE is the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security, and is tasked with enforcing the United States’ border control, customs, trade, and immigration laws. The property, in operation 24/7, houses both the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) directorates. The property was built to the specific needs of ICE and includes crash-barrier-grade perimeter fencing, a guardhouse, holding cells, a fenced sally port, and a forensics lab.
“We are gratified to add another important, mission-critical ICE facility to our portfolio,” said William C. Trimble III, Chief Executive Officer of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. “The ICE - Albuquerque mission is an important one, and this building is responsible for supporting a large enforcement effort in the Southwest. Additionally, we are pleased that this facility is located proximate to our two-building U.S. Forest Service National Operations Center.”
ICE has more than 20,000 employees in the U.S. and the Department of Homeland Security is the second largest contributor to the nation's Joint Terrorism Task Force. HSI is a critical investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security and a vital U.S. asset in combating criminal organizations illegally exploiting America's travel, trade, financial and immigration systems. ERO identifies and apprehends removable aliens, detains these individuals when necessary and removes illegal aliens from the United States.
“Easterly’s eighth acquisition since our initial public offering one year ago, and our first addition in 2016, the ICE - Albuquerque facility comes on the heels of Easterly’s FBI - Richmond acquisition in late 2015, and is another example of the high-quality opportunities we are actively sourcing and underwriting as we continue to grow our mission-critical portfolio,” said Darrell Crate, Chairman of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. “The Company is off to a great start in 2016 and we look forward to providing consistent growth and an attractive total return to our shareholders.”
About Easterly Government Properties, Inc.
Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA) is based in Washington, D.C., and focuses primarily on the acquisition, development and management of Class A commercial properties that are leased to the U.S. Government. Easterly’s experienced management team brings specialized insight into the strategy and needs of mission-critical U.S. Government agencies for properties leased through the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). For further information on the company and its properties, please visit www.easterlyreit.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws and regulations. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as “believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “project,” “anticipate,” “position,” and other similar terms and phrases, including references to assumptions and forecasts of future results. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results to differ materially from those anticipated at the time the forward-looking statements are made. These risks include, but are not limited to those risks and uncertainties associated with our business described from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 30, 2015. Although we believe the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that the expectations will be attained or that any deviation will not be material. All information in this release is as of the date of this release, and we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in our expectations.