News broke last week that Spieker had acquired a development site located in Bellevue's central business district, and is planning to break ground next year on a 550,000-sf, 24-story office tower. It would be the biggest tower in town, though not the tallest.

Spieker Properties (NYSE:SPK) is a publicly traded real estate company that owns and operates over 41 million sf of commercial real estate in California and the Pacific Northwest. Spieker's Pacific Northwest region president Jim Eddy says the $142 million project will solidify its position as the largest office landlord on the Eastside, the region's premier suburban office market. Spieker owns and operates over 2.3 million sf of office property.

"With compelling real estate fundamentals, much like what we see in the San Francisco Bay area, Eastside/Bellevue is one of the strongest markets on the West Coast," adds Eli Khouri, Spieker's chief investment officer. "In addition to strong demand, the vacancy rate is less than two percent, and significant geographical limitations and entitlement restrictions make development in the area very difficult. And with the limited supply of new space being introduced to the market, rents are rising and are expected to continue their upward momentum going forward."