IXL Learning Expands HQ Near Raleigh

Education technology pioneer IXL Learning has expanded its East Coast headquarters by 22,309 square feet at Perimeter Park in Morrisville, N.C. The company now fully occupies the 90,089-square-foot office building at 1600 Perimeter Park Drive. Mapletree US Income Commercial Trust is the landlord.

IXL Learning first moved to the campus in 2016, committing to 17,000 square feet at 1500 Perimeter. Since then, the firm has signed two consecutive expansions in that building, before moving to the adjacent property.

Managing Partner William Allen and Director Alex Dunn of Trinity Partners represented Mapletree in the deal. Coldwell Banker Commercial Senior CRE Advisor Andrew Peceimer and Lee & Associates Managing Director Brian Farmer worked on behalf of the tenant.

Part of a master-planned development

The facility at 1600 Perimeter is part of Perimeter Park, a 3 million-square-foot, Class A office development in the heart of Research Triangle Park, owned by multiple companies. Amenities at the park include two fitness centers, 7 miles of walking trails, a conference center and EV charging stations, along with a tenant lounge and a café.

The LEED Gold-certified building came online in 1994 and rises four stories. The property features floorplates averaging about 22,500 square feet, two passenger elevators and roughly 360 parking spaces.

Mapletree acquired the asset in November 2020, in a $159.1 million portfolio transaction that comprised eight buildings, according to CommercialEdge information. The firm had also purchased three other Perimeter Park assets for $189 million two months earlier.

Tenants at the campus include Microsoft, UNC Health Care, Syneos Health, Premier Research and Northrop Grumman, but also Mercalis, which signed a full-building, 78,588-square-foot lease renewal at 2250 Perimeter Park Drive in February.

Raleigh’s office sector faces headwinds

Raleigh-Durham’s office vacancy rate in the first quarter of this year clocked in at 19.3 percent, up 90 basis points year-over-year, according to a CBRE market report. New office deliveries and lease expirations have lead to the market’s softened fundamentals. Additionally, the metro’s average asking rate during the same period was $31.1.

Last week, railroad and tech solutions provider Railinc committed to 56,371 square feet at Highwoods Properties’ building in Carry, N.C. The LEED Gold-certified property is part of a development that will feature three facilities upon full build-out.