The Meridian Group (TMG) and Harrison Street Asset Management (HSAM), in partnership with HLM Associates, have acquired a five-building, 431,000sqft office portfolio in Chantilly, Virginia. The joint venture partners are understood to have paid around $67m (€57.5m) for the asset.
The buyers said the acquisition of the Stoneleigh and Newbrook campuses represents “a significant investment” in one of Northern Virginia’s most important national security and defence corridors and advances TMG and HSAM’s conviction in the growing demand for modern, mission-critical facilities serving the US defence and intelligence communities.
Located in the heart of the Westfields submarket, the portfolio is home to a concentration of defence and intelligence-focused companies. The joint venture partners said they plan to invest additional capital in the portfolio to expand its secure-facility capabilities, modernise existing infrastructure and create an environment designed to address the evolving needs of companies supporting national security missions.
Gary Block, CIO at TMG, said: “Westfields is an ideal first investment for the platform we have been building. We have developed significant expertise around secure facilities and the unique real estate requirements of the defence and intelligence communities. Our goal is to become a landlord of choice for both traditional government contractors and the growing universe of nontraditional defence and technology companies in the markets we serve.”
Greg Borofsky, managing director at HSAM said: “National security real estate aligns closely with our strategy of investing in specialised assets where durable mission-driven demand and significant barriers-to-entry create compelling long-term fundamentals.
“We are pleased to partner with TMG and HLM to enhance this portfolio and position it to meet the evolving needs of defence and intelligence users.”
HSAM and TMG said that, in partnership with HLM Associates, they are pursuing a strategy that benefits from their combined institutional real estate investment and operating expertise with specialised knowledge of secure facilities, government contracting and the requirements of the US intelligence and defence communities.
Colin Madden, vice president of acquisitions at TMG, added: “Secure facilities are not simply traditional office space with additional construction. We have seen that they require specialised knowledge of accreditation, physical and technical security, construction, operations and the missions of the tenants occupying them. We believe combining that expertise with an institutional real estate platform creates a differentiated offering for the customers we serve.”
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