PSU Takes Top Floor of AT&T Wireless Center

PORTLAND-Portland State University signed a five-year lease for the top floor of the nine-story AT&T Wireless Center building at 1600 SW Fourth Ave. Downtown. The space will house the university’s Regional Research Institute for Human Services, which is part of the university’s Graduate School of Social Work.The 123,000-sf asset is managed by Washington Capital Management, a Seattle-based investment advisor for Taft-Hartley pension trusts in the Western US. Dave Squire of Grubb & Ellis represented WCM in the transaction. Ramona Harrington of Oregon Commercial Properties represented PSU. PSU is moving the Regional Research Institute into the AT&T Wireless Center from the Ondine Building, which is largely a residence hall, says Jay Kenton, the university’s VP of finance and administration. The move was necessary because the institute’s space has been plagued with problems, including flooding and sewers backing up. When those problems are fixed, the space will be converted back to its original use as a food service preparation facility, he says.The ninth floor at AT&T Wireless Center was most recently occupied by Granite Equities, which moved in January to the Willamette Wharf Building at 4640 SW Macadam Ave. in the John’s Landing submarket. PSU took the space largely as is, which means they probably were able to receive at least a 10% break off the asking lease rate, which is $19.50 per sf.More than half of the building is occupied by AT&T. Squire tells GlobeSt.com there is currently one full floor available in the building, the fourth floor, and another 5,000 sf on the seventh floor.