Fitzgerald will be directing the redevelopment, leasing and management of BPG's 2.5-million-square-foot DC area and regional area portfolio as well as oversee the firm's regional office staff of asset managers, development professionals and property managers. The company expects it will expand its portfolio here over the next 12 months as it has $500 million in equity remaining in the $850-million Fund 8 that it still wishes to invest. Leverage is usually 2 to 1, Spaeder says, although that may not hold true in the current market. Still, though, even with small leverage the fund packs significant purchasing power--and a great deal of it will be invested in the DC area, he says.

Fitzgerald will also be looking to lease up vacancies in the local portfolio, of course. Surprisingly--given the current market climate and local firms' clear penchant to remain in their current space--BPG has a strong lease pipeline. In Crystal City, VA, for instance, Spaeder says, of the 350,000 square feet available "we have leases in process for more than half that amount."

Prior to joining BPG, Fitzgerald was SVP and director of leasing at JBG Cos., where he oversaw the development and leasing of eight million square feet of existing commercial space and more than 10 square feet of future development projects. Prior to joining JBG, he was managing director at the Washington Real Estate Investment Trust.