WeWork Looks To Reduce Size Of New Dupont Circle Location
After quickly expanding its D.C. footprint with a string of deals in 2018 and early 2019, WeWork appears to be looking to shed some of its new space.
The coworking company listed 56K SF of its planned 100K SF location at 1333 New Hampshire Ave. NW as available for sublease, the Washington Business Journal reports, citing CoStar.
WeWork in December 2018 jointly acquired the building with The Meridian Group for $136.5M, its first D.C. purchase with its WeWork Property Advisors arm. The team launched a renovation of the building, forcing restaurant tenants Buffalo Billiards and Front Page to close. As part of the deal, WeWork committed to lease 100K SF of the 350K SF building as a coworking space.
The building sits across the street from the Dupont Circle Metro station and about a half-mile from WeWork's first location in the neighborhood at 1875 Connecticut Ave. NW. In addition to the sublease listing, WeWork has also removed the 1333 New Hampshire location from its website, the Business Journal reported.
The move comes as WeWork continues to navigate a series of challenges, from the aftermath of last year's failed IPO to the coronavirus pandemic putting an additional strain on its finances to lawsuits and reported investigations. The company has responded to the pandemic by rolling out new space layouts and social distancing measures at its coworking facilities.
