DC Gov Takes Part of a Floor at 80 M St, SE

WASHINGTON, DC-The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority is taking 16,450-square feet at 80 M St., SE. Wells Real Estate Investment Trust II owns the 320,000-square foot Gold LEED-certified building, located in Washington’s Capitol Riverfront area. The lease, which will run through 2019, is for part of the seven-story building’s top floor. Cushman & Wakefield’s Brian Raher, Randy Lennon and Susan Thomas represented the landlord in the transaction. The utility was represented by Transwestern’s Pete Larson and Jeff Gross.

The tenant is not surprising—many DC and federal government offices have chosen to make the cheaper and metro-accessible Capitol Riverfront home. The lease, though, is a little bit of a departure from recent history given the relative paucity of transactions in this part of the city over the past several weeks. According to Transwestern statistics, the direct vacancy rate for the District in general is 8.15% and with sublet space taken into account, it is as high as 9.2%. Of the total 133.9 million square feet of rentable space, there is some 10.8 million square feet available. The Capital Riverfront’s direct vacancy rate, by contrast, is 18.1% and 18.7% when sublet space is included. Of its 3.7 million square feet of rental space, it has 681,895 square feet available.

Still, the area has potential especially given its multi-use development. “The Capitol Riverfront submarket is a wonderful live, work, and play environment, Lennon says in a prepared statement. “DC Water was attracted to this vibrant, new area, which is in close proximity to its other facilities in the city.”