Madison Retail Group principals Michael Pratt and Eric Rubin brokered the leases with Forever 21 and Guess. They represented both sides in the Forever 21 transaction; Rubin brokered the Guess deal with the company's national consultant Carol Rosenfeld.
The former Woodies, as it is affectionately called here, was redeveloped a few years ago. Located at 1025 F St., the roughly 500,000-square-foot, 10-story building has slotted between 140,000 square feet to 150,000 square feet to retail; the remainder has been leased to office tenants. The asking rate for the former department store site was $45 per square foot, Pratt tells GlobeSt.com--a far cry from the $100 or so per square foot that such space commanded a few years ago. Nonetheless, the Forever 21 lease takes the building to near complete occupancy, which for most retail owners has become a noteworthy achievement.
Pratt indirectly attributes the leases to the excitement in the city over President Barack Obama. "It is an intangible that is hard to put a figure on--but much about retail is about perception. There is definitely a sense of excitement and newness around Obama and that is helping the city."
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Erika Morphy
Erika Morphy has been writing about commercial real estate at GlobeSt.com for more than ten years, covering the capital markets, the Mid-Atlantic region and national topics. She's a nerd so favorite examples of the former include accounting standards, Basel III and what Congress is brewing.
