Columbia Property Trust Launches 105,000-Square-Foot Vertical Expansion Atop 80 M Street in DC’s Thriving Capitol Riverfront District

Pioneering construction project is D.C.’s first to feature environmentally-friendly mass timber in a commercial office building

Over half of new space pre-leased as new headquarters for American Trucking Associations

Columbia Property Trust will commence Washington, D.C.’s first commercial office mass timber construction project at 80 M Street and has pre-leased more than half the new space to the American Trucking Associations. Rendering by the architect, Hickok Cole. (Photo: Business Wire)

WASHINGTON--()--Columbia Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE: CXP) announced today that it will soon begin construction of a 105,000-square-foot vertical expansion of 80 M Street, a Class-A office property in Washington, D.C. The expansion space will consist of two new floors and a habitable penthouse to be built atop the existing 286,000-square-foot building located in the Capitol Riverfront District.

Columbia also announced that it has pre-leased over half of the new space with a new 60,000-square-foot lease with the American Trucking Associations (ATA). The largest national trade association for the trucking industry, ATA has signed a 16-year lease to move its headquarters out of the Virginia suburbs into two of the new floors at 80 M Street, and plans to occupy its new office in summer 2022.

Pioneering Project will Feature Mass Timber Construction

With this project, 80 M Street has become the first commercial office building in D.C. to feature mass timber new construction. Columbia is pioneering the local commercial use of this cutting-edge building technique, which relies on a composite wood product engineered from hard wood grown in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. A departure from D.C.’s commodity construction cycle, mass timber construction has been recognized as providing structural integrity and fire resistance that is favorably comparable to steel and concrete construction, but with a lower overall weight load and a lower carbon footprint than these other building methods.

Complementing the project’s environmental attributes, Columbia is working with architect Hickok Cole to design the expansion space at 80 M Street to offer wellness and productivity benefits as well. The new floors will feature 16-foot ceiling heights and 12-foot-high windows – a combination that allows for double the amount of light penetration possible in standard space. Other highlights of the design include exposed ceilings, polished concrete floors, and an abundance of connected outdoor spaces that will add nearly 4,000 square feet of outdoor amenity space atop the building. When completed, 80 M Street’s new top floors should appeal to tenants seeking creative, boutique-style space in the popular Capitol Riverfront neighborhood.

“We’ve experienced terrific leasing results at 80 M Street, bringing the existing building to near full capacity. This was aided by a redesign of the lobby and common areas and reflects the momentum of D.C.’s Navy Yard submarket,” said Nelson Mills, CEO of Columbia Property Trust. “By delivering more than 100,000 square feet of state-of-the-art vertical expansion, we expect to create substantial additional value for our shareholders.”

“For 87 years, ATA has been the leading voice of the trucking industry,” said Chris Spear, President and CEO of the American Trucking Associations. “Our decision to return ATA’s headquarters to our nation’s capital will further amplify that voice and steer decisions that impact trucking. This added presence to our existing Capitol Hill office will take ATA and its agenda to the next level.”

80 M Street is Well Positioned to Serve Innovative Companies

Located adjacent to the home of the world champion Washington Nationals, 80 M Street has been designed to appeal to the new generation of talent that is migrating toward the Capitol Riverfront / Navy Yard neighborhood and making it Washington, D.C.’s fastest growing submarket. Other recent renovations at 80 M Street include a reimagined main lobby and expansive new tenant lounge, which connects via an oversized garage-style door to a large front terrace on M Street.

With this lease, 80 M Street at its pro forma, post-expansion size of 391,000 square feet is 76% leased overall. The building’s 2022 availability will be able to accommodate firm requirements from 20,000 to 90,000 square feet, including the remaining available space within the mass timber expansion, which is anticipated to be ready for tenant build out in 2021.

About Columbia Property Trust

Columbia Property Trust (NYSE: CXP) creates value through owning, operating and developing Class-A office buildings in high-barrier U.S. office markets, primarily New York, San Francisco, and Washington D.C. Columbia is deeply experienced in transactions, asset management and repositioning, leasing, and property management. It employs these competencies to grow value across its high-quality, well-leased portfolio of 17 properties that contain approximately seven million rentable square feet, as well as two properties under development. Columbia has investment-grade ratings from both Moody’s and S&P. For more information, please visit www.columbia.reit.

Forward-Looking Statements:

Certain statements contained in this press release other than historical facts may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements can generally be identified by our use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "continue," or other similar words. Such statements include, in particular, statements about our leasing prospects, the timing of capital projects, and the anticipated results of our leasing and investments, and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, including known and unknown risks, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated. Therefore, such statements are not intended to be a guarantee of our performance in future periods. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.

Any such forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions involving judgments with respect to, among other things, future economic, competitive, and market conditions, all of which are difficult or impossible to predict accurately. To the extent that our assumptions differ from actual conditions, our ability to accurately anticipate results expressed in such forward-looking statements, including our ability to generate positive cash flow from operations, make distributions to stockholders, and maintain the value of our real estate properties, may be significantly hindered. See Item 1A in Columbia Property Trust’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, for a discussion of some of the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those presented in our forward-looking statements. The risk factors described in our Annual Report and Quarterly Reports are not the only ones we face, but do represent those risks and uncertainties that we believe are material to us. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also harm our business. We do not undertake any duty to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.

 

Contacts

Media Contact:
Bud Perrone
T 212 843 8068
E bperrone@rubenstein.com

Investor Relations:
Matt Stover
T 404 465 2227
E IR@columbia.reit

Release Summary

Columbia Property Trust has pre-leased part of its new mass timber expansion of 80 M Street in Washington, D.C. to American Trucking Associations.

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Contacts

Media Contact:
Bud Perrone
T 212 843 8068
E bperrone@rubenstein.com

Investor Relations:
Matt Stover
T 404 465 2227
E IR@columbia.reit