The $356-per-sf price tag exceeds the average sale price for a class B property in the District which, according to Advantis Real Estate Services Cos.' Third Quarter 2005 Office Report, is $338 per sf, year-to-date. Developed in 1972, 801 17th St. is a 12-story structure that is presently fully occupied by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The agency, however, will vacate the premises early next year and relocate to a new office building in Arlington, VA.

The property had been fated for redevelopment by the seller, which contracted real estate firm Akridge to oversee the project. "We were in the very initial stages of redeveloping it for Blum Frank, but the asset has sold, so we are no longer involved," an Akridge spokesperson tells GlobeSt.com. According to the Downtown Business Improvement District's "Development Activity in the Greater Downtown Washington, DC" quarterly report for the first quarter of 2005, the redevelopment endeavor would have cost $51 million, with work beginning in the third quarter of 2006 and wrapping up in the first quarter of 2008.

Louis Dreyfus senior development manager Sean Cahill tells GlobeSt.com that there are two options the new owner is considering for the property. "We are not sure what we're going to do yet, but we will either plan a $10- to $15-million renovation or tear it down."