BALTIMORE, MD-The Baltimore office market--not to mention, no doubt, Columbia Property Trust--heaved a sigh of relief when T. Rowe Price signed a letter of intent to renew the 424,877 square feet it occupies at 100 East Pratt St. Now, though, the relief is official: the REIT announced that it has finalized the renewal and extension of T. Rowe Price's lease through 2027. The investment manager and its 1,300 employees will continue to occupy a ground floor Investor Center and 12 floors. Terms of the lease were not disclosed.

Columbia Property Trust was represented by Bruce Matthai of Cassidy Turley. T. Rowe Price Associates was represented by Eric Feinberg and Rick Schuham of Studley.

The lease was eagerly anticipated by investors in the city that see it gaining momentum among national investors. Los Angeles-based Laurus Corp. cited the renewal as evidence that Baltimore is a stable office market worthy of institutional investment. Laurus recently acquired the Charles Center Sout, a 25-story class A office building in the city's CBD. Jones Lang LaSalle, as well, pointed to it as signs of the market's robust office health.

In fact, JLL noted that the renewal could facilitate the sale of 1 East Pratt, a 352,000 square foot building that went on the market in October.

The deal was clearly important to Columbia Property Trust as well. Retaining T. Rowe Price was one of the REIT's top priorities for 2013, Nelson Mills, CEO of Columbia Property Trust, says in a prepared statement.

Other tenants in the 653,000-square-foot, 10-story building, plus 28-story tower, include IBM, LaSalle Investment Management, Merrill Lynch, PriceWaterhouse Coopers and Tydings & Rosenberg.