Alexander Hutton is Moving to the Smith Tower

Fueled by competitive rents, Smith Tower is filling up with tenants months after a group of local investors took ownership of the landmark via a deed in lieu of foreclosure.

The price hasn't been publicly revealed but one of the buyers, Joe Razore of GT Capital, this summer said it was so low the owners could offer "the most competitive terms in the city."

That's paying dividends in a market that, according to CBRE, has likely not bottomed out yet but was boosted this fall when Amazon called employees back to the office five days a week starting in the new year.

Eleven leases totaling over 42,000 square feet and four letters of intent for 23,000 square feet have been signed, Smith Tower listing brokerage Broderick Group posted on LinkedIn. Caffe Vita will fill a ground floor space.

About 55% of the tower's nearly 268,750 square feet is available for lease, per Broderick Group marketing materials.

One of the new tenants is middle-market investment bank Alexander Hutton. Owner and President James Thompson said the company leased around 5,000 square feet on the 18th floor.

"Smith Tower is an iconic building. People will want to come and visit because of the amenities" like the Observatory bar near the top of the 42-story tower, he said in an interview.

"I'm a big believer in the future of downtown Seattle. I think the recovery is coming," he added.

Pioneer Square, where Smith Tower is, is perceived as not as safe as the central business district around Rainier Tower. Thompson said that hasn't been his experience.

"Saturday night I walked to Pioneer Square from Rainier Tower. It was a nice walk," said Thompson, who declined to say what Alexander Hutton is paying for rent other than it's reflective of the market.

"We looked at all kinds of space. If you're a believer in Seattle, now is a great time to sign a long-term lease," he said, adding his company signed a seven-year lease.

Chris Hughes of JLL negotiated the deal for Alexander Hutton.

His walk to Pioneer Square is one of the many anecdotes about how downtown feels safer. In the core of downtown, crime has decreased since the city's deployment of the Downtown Activation Team began in September.

"I talk to SPD. Crime in downtown Seattle is really just in spots," Thompson said. He said he can walk from Rainier Tower to Chipolte at Third and Pike and not feel threatened.

Alexander Hutton called employees back to the office four days a week early on when the pandemic eased.

"We got back to the office pronto to best develop the skills of new hires," Thompson said. "We believe in culture."

Even though the 10-employee office is more than doubling its physical footprint, Thompson said he is not planning for aggressive growth.

"We are, quite frankly, in too small a space today," he said. "We want to have flexibility."

He added the local ownership factored into his decision to lease at Smith Tower. "It's not some faceless institution in some far away state," he said, adding he thinks their "commitment to tenant safety is legit."

"Alexander Hutton is exactly the kind of tenant that I thought would lead us out of the doldrums the market has been in," Razore said. "Like us, they believe in the future of downtown."

Razore this summer said his GT Capital bought Smith Tower with "prominent Seattle families" and local investment firms Freestone Capital Management and Evergreen Ventures, the alternative investment arm of Evergreen Gavekal.

Breana Brown, a director on Freestone’s investments team, has a familial connection to Smith Tower. She said on LinkedIn her great-grandfather contributed to its construction.

The assessed value of Smith Tower has tumbled from a peak of $137 million three years ago to $62 million.

News & Resources

Alexander Hutton is Moving to the Smith Tower