The landmark Old Post Office building in Washington is slated for redevelopment by AEW Capital Management. The Boston-based real estate adviser was selected by the General Services Administration, Washington, to solicit and evaluate proposals from development firms for revitalizing the property.
The building could be transformed into anything from a mall to an arts center, but informed sources said it's likely to be turned into a hotel.
Located on the corner of 12th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington's Federal Triangle, the nine-story, 420,000-square-foot building, topped with a clock tower, was one of the first modern skyscrapers, said Pamela Wessling, AEW vice president. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966 and is a designated National Landmark.
"With funding from Congress, it was originally constructed in 1899 as headquarters for the first U.S. Post Office," said Ms. Wessling. Initially it served as headquarters for both the federal and city post office, but the city post office was moved in 1914, and the federal headquarters was moved in 1934. After that, the GSA leased the property to various federal agencies, and in recent years the ground floor was used for retail.
Current tenants include the National Endowment for the Arts, the Presidential Council for the Arts and Humanities, and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.
AEW - whose pension fund clients include the $149 billion California Public Employees' Retirement System, Sacramento, and the $20 billion Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds, Hartford - also provides real estate financial advisory services to government and non-profit agencies.
