Pending Lawsuit, Trammell Crow Will Win the FCC HQ Bid
Trammell Crow has all but secured the rights to the FCC's new HQ building, pending a lawsuit with the agency's current landlord.
The lease would move the FCC from 445 12th St SW to Trammell Crow's Sentinel Square development in NoMa, the Washington Business Journal reports.
The agreement is contingent upon the FCC's current landlord, Republic Properties affiliate Parcel 49C, losing its lawsuit to keep the agency's HQ. Parcel 49C filed a federal claims suit contesting the GSA's search requirements for the new FCC HQ, which included a first-floor ceiling height minimum and called for a dual source of power, essentially disqualifying the current building from contention.
Parcel 49C already lodged these protests with the GAO, which denied them in March. The GSA notified Trammell Crow of its successful bid last month.
If the lawsuit is dismissed, Trammell Crow will begin construction on the third part of its Sentinel Square project at 45 and 55 L St NE. The project will include 570k SF of office space and 20k SF of retail. The Sentinel Square building sits across from Perseus Realty's Storey Park development site. The 413k SF has been largely leased since it delivered in 2010. Sentinel Square II has been vacant since it delivered in 2013, but the wait appears to have paid off.
The deal would be the second major coup for NoMa in the past year, with the Justice Department signing on with StonebridgeCarras for an 839k SF lease at its Constitution Square development. [WBJ]
