Hines Global REIT Pays $160M for Fisher Plaza

SEATTLE-Houston-based Hines Global REIT has acquired Fisher Plaza, a two-building office complex here from Fisher Media Services Co., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fisher Communications Inc. Hines will assume property management responsibilities on behalf of Hines Global REIT.

Hines tells GlobeSt.com that the purchase price was $160 million, exclusive of transaction costs and working capital reserves. “Over the past several years, we have strategically repositioned Fisher for the opportunities we see as a leading local media company,” says Colleen Brown, president and CEO of Fisher Communications in a prepared statement. “Fisher Plaza has been an asset that is not a central component of our business model and executing this transaction provides added flexibility in our effort to create additional value for our shareholders.”

Completed in 2003, Fisher Plaza contains a five-story building and a six-story building totaling 293,727 square feet of office, retail, broadcast, telecommunications and data center space. The complex is 96% leased to tenants including: Fisher Communications, the largest tenant, with a 12-year lease for its corporate headquarters and Seattle television, radio and internet operations; along with a number of regional, national and internationally known data center and collocation tenants.

“This is an extremely well-constructed and located asset with a unique mix of uses in Seattle.  We are happy to have the opportunity to invest in one of the highest quality multi-tenanted data centers in the region, with outstanding access to telecommunication providers,” explains Hines VP Ty Bennion, in a prepared statement. “We are especially pleased to be starting a long-term relationship with Fisher Communications, one of the leading broadcast media companies in the Pacific Northwest.”

Hines has experience in managing high-quality data and telecommunications centers in multiple facilities across the US including the 661,553-square-foot One Wilshire Building in Los Angeles. “The acquisition of Fisher Plaza is consistent with the strategy of the Hines Global REIT to acquire well-located, market-leading assets in top performing cities,” says Charles Hazen, president and CEO of Hines Global REIT. “We look forward to continuing our growth in attractive Pacific Northwest markets like Seattle.”