F5 Inks Major Lease at Upcoming Seattle Tower

By Veronica Grecu

Rendering of F5 Tower in Seattle

The 700,577-square-foot office tower that’s under construction in downtown Seattle landed a big new tenant. F5 Networks is set to move its corporate headquarters from Elliott Avenue West into the new building at 801 Fifth Ave. in early 2019, as soon as the tenant improvement build-out is completed.

The tech company announced last week it has signed a lease agreement for 516,000 square feet of office space across floors 20 through 48. A 189-key, Philippe Starck-designed luxury hotel will occupy the lower floors of the building. As part of the deal, the office structure will change its name from The Mark into F5 Tower to honor its new tenant.

“Our move to F5 Tower will provide current and future F5 employees with an iconic, modern corporate headquarters that aligns with our growth as a company and showcases our significant place in Seattle’s technology industry,” said Andy Reinland, CFO of F5 Networks, in prepared remarks. “The new space will provide a dynamic work environment that will help attract top talent, while giving us room for continued growth.”

After carefully evaluating a list of options across King County, F5 Networks selected the tower at 801 Fifth Ave. thanks to its excellent access to public transportation options and freeways, as well as a wide range of employee amenities and its proximity to downtown conveniences. Running operations in the same building with a hotel offer the company access to extended meeting space and provided a convenient location for visiting employees, customers and partners. F5 Networks was funded in 1996 and currently has approximately 4,400 employees, most of which work at the existing 300,000-square-foot headquarters on Elliott Avenue West.

Designed by ZGF Architects of Seattle, F5 Tower is being developed by Daniels Real Estate and financial partner Stockbridge Capital Group, with JTM Construction serving as general contractor. The tower will seek LEED Gold certification upon completion, which is scheduled for this summer. F5 Tower will also include retail space, a spa, a restaurant and conference rooms, as well as six levels of underground parking.

JLL’s Stuart Williams and Joe Gowan represented the landlord in leasing the office tower. Kinzer Partners represented F5 Networks in their search for a new corporate headquarters.

“Downtown Seattle has incredible infrastructure, amazing talent, and offers everything that F5 Networks and other technology leaders need for continued growth and financial success,” said Craig Kinzer of Kinzer Partners. “F5 moving to its own high-rise represents a new trend of tech firms utilizing all the benefits of a dense, urban location, as opposed to the traditional, low-rise campus outside the downtown core.”

Image courtesy of ZGF Architects