PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT/NYSE:PEI) has signed a lease with Philadelphia Media Network Inc. (PMN), owner and publisher of The Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News, and Philly.com, for occupancy of 125,000 square feet of space in 801 Market Street, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The building anchors The Gallery at Market East, both owned by PREIT. PMN is expected to move in to its new headquarters in summer 2012.
PMN’s move to 801 Market Street marks the latest development in the renaissance of Market East, a vital component of Center City Philadelphia. The transformation of Market East will incorporate large format digital advertising on the exterior facade designed to reach thousands of people daily. PREIT, in conjunction with PMN, will also transform the delivery of media by utilizing the well-positioned building to provide up-to-the-minute news coverage and sports highlights via a dynamic digital messaging system.
“Bringing Philadelphia Media Network to this Center City location reestablishes 801 Market as a premier address and signals the resurgence of Market East and The Gallery,” said Joseph F. Coradino, President of PREIT Services LLC and PREIT-RUBIN, Inc. “The Philadelphia icon opened in 1868 as Strawbridge & Clothier’s flagship store; now it will be home to more than 2600 business professionals and lead the way in state-of-the-art digital media.”
PMN will be located on the third floor of 801 Market Street and extend into the adjacent Gallery. Over 600 PMN employees join 750 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania workers who have occupied three floors of the building since 2009, and an additional 1200 employees utilizing office spaces on seven upper floors.
Situated above the city’s complex Mass Transit system which provides connection to the Philadelphia suburbs and southern New Jersey, The Gallery and 801 Market Street provide area business professionals, visitors, shoppers and residents direct access to the major transportation hub. The property is located between the Philadelphia Convention Center and the National Constitution Center, a few blocks from the city’s famous historic district. PREIT rehabilitated 801 Market Street in 2009 with goals of historic preservation and sustainability; it was recently awarded LEED Gold Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council and was redeveloped in part using federal historic tax credits.
About Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust
Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, founded in 1960 and one of the first equity REITs in the U.S., has a primary investment focus on retail shopping malls. Currently, the Company's portfolio consists of 49 properties, including 38 shopping malls, eight community and power centers, and three development properties. The Company's properties are located in 13 states in the eastern half of the United States, primarily in the Mid-Atlantic region. The operating retail properties have approximately 33 million total square feet of space. PREIT is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Company's website can be found at www.preit.com. PREIT is publicly traded on the NYSE under the symbol PEI.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains certain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements relate to expectations, beliefs, projections, future plans, strategies, anticipated events, trends and other matters that are not historical facts. These forward-looking statements reflect our current views about future events, achievements or results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances that might cause future events, achievements or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. In particular, our business might be materially and adversely affected by uncertainties affecting real estate businesses generally as well as the following, among other factors: our substantial debt and our high leverage ratio; constraining leverage, interest and tangible net worth covenants under our 2010 Credit Facility, as amended; our ability to refinance our existing indebtedness when it matures, on favorable terms, or at all; our ability to raise capital, including through the issuance of equity or equity-related securities if market conditions are favorable, through joint ventures or other partnerships, through sales of properties, or through other actions; our short- and long-term liquidity position; the effects on us of dislocations and liquidity disruptions in the capital and credit markets; current economic conditions and their effect on employment, consumer confidence and spending; tenant business performance, prospects, solvency and leasing decisions; the value and potential impairment of our properties; increases in operating costs that cannot be passed on to tenants; our ability to maintain and increase property occupancy, sales and rental rates, including at our redeveloped properties; risks relating to development and redevelopment activities; changes in the retail industry, including consolidation and store closings; the effects of online shopping and other uses of technology on our retail tenants; general economic, financial and political conditions, including credit market conditions, changes in interest rates or unemployment; concentration of our properties in the Mid-Atlantic region; changes in local market conditions, such as the supply of or demand for retail space, or other competitive factors; potential dilution from any capital raising transactions; possible environmental liabilities; our ability to obtain insurance at a reasonable cost; and the existence of complex regulations, including those relating to our status as a REIT, and the adverse consequences if we were to fail to qualify as a REIT. Additional factors that might cause future events, achievements or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements include those discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 in the section entitled “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” We do not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or otherwise.
Additional information about PREIT is available on www.preit.com.