Amazon, who occupied the building since it was built in 2001, vacated the building at the end of April of this year as part of a corporate consolidation. “The most compelling aspect of this acquisition for us was the opportunity to own a ‘best in class’ building in the south Seattle CBD submarket at a time when leasing in the Seattle area is showing strong momentum,” explains Bryan Thornton, partner with PCCP. “We were able to purchase a prime office building in an established location at a substantial discount to replacement cost.”

The office building is within the Union Station office complex, a five-building, 1.1 million square foot development consisting of mid-rise office buildings over a central 1,100 stall parking garage and the restored Union Station railroad depot. The Union Station project was developed from 1998 to 2002. Morgan Deal, senior acquisition manager of Principal Real Estate Investors, also observed that the building quality, access to public and private transportation corridors, and surrounding environment will allow the property to compete with the upper echelon of class A buildings throughout the Seattle CBD. “There is distinct market momentum for technology related firms to target locations not only in close proximity to downtown Seattle, but the Pioneer Square area in particular due to the architectural character of the area, entertainment and service amenities, and regional transportation access.”
The allure of the submarket is illustrated by the 300,000 square feet of leases executed by tenants within the last 120 days including Cobalt, Isilon and Zulily; as well as a large amount of companies currently in the market for office space, according to a prepared statement.