The building consists of a 22-story tower built in 1926 and a 20-story structure built in 1965, which aggregate approximately 260,000 sf of office space, plus a 12,000-sf ground-floor space currently occupied by the restaurant Striped Bass. At the time of the sale to Sant, the office space was about 85% leased, David Grasso, president of Metro, tells GlobeSt.com, and he says the rental rates for the class B property are "in the high teens."
Calls to Sant were not returned by deadline. However, Grasso says, "it's my understanding that they intend to keep it as an office property." Sant recently acquired New Market Pavilion on Headhouse Square in Society Hill with plans to build a residential condo.
As for Metro's sale, Grasso says, "we got a tremendous return." Metro acquired the building from its initial $75-million real estate fund. "All that money is spent and it provided an exceptional return." Grasso declines to disclose the specific return. "We're now ready to raise a second, $200-million fund. We have a pipeline, and the targeted areas are metropolitan Philadelphia and Manhattan, but we are also looking to expand all up and down the East Coast."
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