Citrus Heights firm buys Capitol Mall building for $28 million

A Citrus Heights real estate investment company has bought an eight-story downtown Sacramento building at 520 Capitol Mall, citing the structure’s proximity to the new Golden 1 Center.

Tim LeFever, principal/owner with LeFever Mattson said Tuesday that the $28 million purchase was finalized last Thursday.

LeFever noted that the building with more than 80,000 square feet was “very well maintained” by seller BTV Crown Equities in Sacramento.

The building has gone through multiple tenants since it was built for IBM in 1963. It served as the headquarters for the Sacramento City Unified School District between 1991 and 2001. The district bought the building for $8.5 million – a purchase that drew criticism from people who said the building was an inefficient “Taj Mahal” and wasn’t accessible to the public. The district sold the building in 2001 for $12.5 million.

Currently, LeFever said the building is occupied by “a lot of law firms and government-related” entities. It’s 90 percent leased, and has an on-site parking garage.

According to BTV’s website, BTV acquired the building in 2001 and renovated it in 2002-03. Average occupancy has been 95 percent over the long term, BTV said.

LeFever said the recently opened Golden 1 Center and related developments around it helped drive interest in the purchase.

“We were looking at what assets to purchase in the market,” LeFever said in a phone interview. “It will be a building to watch …We’re very excited about what’s happening in Sacramento. … There are some great things going on in midtown as well.”

Asked what future plans he has for the building, LeFever said: “Well, we just purchased it, so it’s a little early to talk about that … but we certainly have some plans for it.”

This story was originally published October 11, 2016 at 5:31 PM with the headline "Citrus Heights firm buys Capitol Mall building for $28 million."