WASHINGTON, DC-2099 Pennsylvania Ave., a trophy office building in the heart of the city, has traded for an undisclosed price to Paramount Group. The address should ring a bell to local commercial real estate watchers: the last time this building sold was during the depth of the recession and it sold for one of the highest per square foot prices at the time--$867 per square foot, or $172.5 million.

The buyer in that 2008 transaction was Dublin-based Vico Capital, which spurred hopes and expectations that foreign real estate investors would ride in to save the markets, or at least the DC market. That ending never quite happened as we know, although Washington rode out the recession relatively unscathed.

Still, curiosity about the building’s new trading price is unusually high. Paramount is not talking, other than to say the obvious. “We acquired 2099 because it was a perfect fit with the properties in our national office portfolio--well located, solid architectural pedigree, tremendous upside potential--and we expect it to perform well under our brand and management,” a spokeswoman tells GlobeSt.com.

The New York-based company acquired the 12-story, 206,573 square-foot building on behalf of Paramount Group Real Estate Fund IV. It comes with a stellar architectural pedigree, designed by Pei Cobb Freed and Partners.

There is 131,000 square feet of space due to roll over in the building in the next 12 months, Albert Behler, president and CEO of Paramount Group, said in a prepared statement. This acquisition gives Paramount Group five properties in the capital region, for a total of 1.5 million square feet. “Paramount Group is interested in making additional acquisitions in the Washington, DC market this year and it is also focused on the New York and San Francisco markets,” the spokeswoman tells GlobeSt.com.

Update: Word on the street is that the building is trading at $155 million. Stay tuned for more coverage.