Armada Hoffler to build law office tower in Richmond

By Josh Brown

Virginia Beach developer Armada Hoffler plans to build a 15-story office tower in Richmond to house the Williams Mullen law firm.

Armada plans to break ground in October on the 200,000-square-foot building, which has received preliminary approval from the Richmond City Council.

The law firm has signed on to occupy 150,000 square feet of the building's space, which will be Class A, or top of the line, when it opens in 2010. The building's remaining space is yet to be leased.

Armada plans to spend about $60 million on the office tower, said Danya Bushey, Armada's marketing director.

The Richmond City Council will vote July 28 on whether to give the project an economic development grant that would amount to $1.5 million over five years.

The company still is working on obtaining financing for the project, Bushey said.

Williams Mullen would consolidate its Richmond offices and 350 workers into the new building, Bushey said in an e-mail.

The building would be the first major office tower in Richmond since 1990, said John Cooke, a senior vice president for real estate company Thalhimer/Cushman & Wakefield.

"They wouldn't build this without a lead tenant," Cooke said.

He said the office market in Richmond has been stable for many years, though vacancy rates are expected to rise when Wachovia Securities vacates 250,000 square feet downtown at the end of the year.

Josh Brown, (757) 446-2318, josh.brown@pilotonline.com