The Buccini/Pollin Group Announces Purchase of the DuPont Building and Historic Hotel duPont

APRIL 13, 2017, WILMINGTON, DE – Wilmington and Washington D.C.-based developer The Buccini/Pollin Group, Inc. (BPG), is pleased to announce the purchase of the historic DuPont Building and Hotel du Pont, a 950,000 sq. ft. mixed-use complex, from The Chemours Company (NYSE:CC), who has agreed to lease back office space for 17 years. CBRE acted as an advisor to Chemours on the sale.

This 950,000 sq. ft. mixed use complex that takes up an entire city block facing the historic Rodney Square at the center of Wilmington, is an original embodiment of the Work/Play/Stay concept that now anchors the urban redevelopment of today’s U.S. cities. The DuPont Building dates back to 1908 as one of the first high-rises built in Wilmington, built to house DuPont headquarters, and is still considered the largest mixed-use building in the State of Delaware. Soon after the Hotel was commissioned by Pierre S. DuPont, built in the Italian Renaissance style, and debuted in 1913 as a showcase hotel, rivalling even the finest hotels and restaurants of Europe and New York City. In 1918 the DuPont Theatre, now known as the Playhouse on Rodney Square, was built to bring class-act Broadway theater to town. This blend of functions, executed with the utmost taste and style, is what made the DuPont building the place to be in Downtown Wilmington, and most importantly, the anchor of historic Market Street.

Fast forward a century, through the multiple transformations that downtown Wilmington and the DuPont Company have seen, to a city in the midst of a transformation. A city with a growing downtown residential population, an innovative business culture, a blossoming entertainment and dining district, and The Buccini/Pollin Group at the helm continually pushing it forward with successes such as the rebirth of The Queen Theater and the opening of 20+ new dining and retail businesses downtown.

“The purchase of the DuPont Building and its assets couldn’t make any more sense to us right now,” says Chris Buccini, Co-President of The Buccini/Pollin Group, who has purchased over 40 properties in Downtown Wilmington, including two former DuPont headquarter buildings that they repositioned into multi-tenanted mixed-use buildings. “There is no better way to coalesce our long-running vision for a vibrant downtown where people come together to live, work and play, than to take on the DuPont Building and re-envision it as a modern version of what it has always been, a lifestyle center for the City of Wilmington.”

The $175 million complete project that BPG has planned for the property includes the preservation of The Hotel du Pont and its signature Green Room restaurant, which were recently awarded Four Diamond status for 2017. BPG’s affiliate PM Hotel Group, an award-winning operator of 40+ upscale, lifestyle, luxury and independent hotels across the United States, will manage the hotel, ensuring that it retains its historic elegance, world-class service and intense focus on modern technology. The 1200-seat Playhouse on Rodney Square will remain in operation as Delaware’s premier source of Broadway touring theater, with a new entrance from Tenth Street.

The first phase of modernization will involve turning 256,000 sq. ft. of existing office space into the modern, open plan headquarters space for Chemours, with a dedicated entrance lobby on Market Street across from historic Rodney Square. “Staying in this historic building is an entirely appropriate acknowledgment of our legacy,” says Mark Vergnano, CEO of Chemours. “And just as we have been transforming Chemours into a world-class chemistry company, now working closely with BPG, we will transform our office space into a modern, world-class work environment.” After the Chemours renovation there will be only 60,000 sq. ft. of leasable multi-tenant office space remaining.

One way that BPG is excited to enhance upon the already existing mixed-use strengths of the property is by adding approximately 180 luxury multifamily units, bringing the “stay” concept that has always existed at the building to the 21st century. The residential portion of the building will have its own dedicated lobby entrance on Tenth Street and will feature shared services and amenities provided by Hotel du Pont, a privilege that can only be unique to this property. Co-President of The Buccini/Pollin Group, Rob Buccini explains, “There really is no other mixed use project in the Mid-Atlantic like this. Adding the multi-family component and the exciting enhancement of the ground floor retail is what will transition an already vibrant asset into an 18-hour urban center in this new era of amenity-based downtown living and working.”

BPG plans to reclaim the ground floor, pedestrian-accessed portion of the building, and reposition it as an exciting retail and dining center, including the complete replacement of the darkly tinted glazing with clear and approachable windows. The retail space, totaling 40,000 sq. ft. on the ground floor, will continue to include the M&T Bank retail branch at 10th & Market. M&T Bank is also assisting with the construction financing for the project. “We are encouraged to see this level of reinvestment in downtown Wilmington,” said Nick Lambrow, President of M&T Bank’s Delaware region. “A vibrant city center is a catalyst for a healthy, thriving region, and this project will preserve and enhance one of Wilmington’s most iconic properties.”

The new retail plan will be anchored at the opposite corner of 10th and Orange St, an innovative and unique food hall, featuring multiple restaurateurs and cuisine styles open to the public. “We are enthusiastic about this food hall concept,” says Chris Buccini. ”The food hall will be a community hub for people living and working in and around the building on a daily basis, and provide an affordable dining experience that will create a balance with the unmatchable fine dining experience that the Green Room has to offer. We will really have the full spectrum of dining options here, and can focus on leasing the remaining 20,000 sq. ft. of retail,” he says.

But what Chris Buccini is the proudest of is the fact that the 100 full-time associates of the hotel will be retained, and that the 100 current contract associates will become permanent employees, “This acquisition not only cements BPG’s footprint as one of the largest developers, operators and owners in the Mid-Atlantic region, but establishes BPG as the largest locally owned employer in the City of Wilmington,” Chris exclaims. “We welcome our newest associates to the BPG team, where we are proud to be consistently voted as one of Delaware’s top places to work.”

About The Buccini/Pollin Group

The Buccini/Pollin Group, Inc. (Buccini/Pollin) is a privately held, integrated real estate acquisition, development and management company with offices in Washington DC, Wilmington Delaware, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. Buccini/Pollin has developed and acquired hotel, office, residential, retail, and parking properties throughout the United States.

Buccini/Pollin has acquired, developed and owns real estate assets having a value in excess of $4.0 billion, including over 40 hotels, 6 million square feet of office and retail space, 10 major residential communities, and multiple entertainment venues, including Talen Energy Stadium, home of the Philadelphia Union Major League Soccer team.

The principals of Buccini/Pollin, along with PM Hotel Group (hotel operating company), BPG Real Estate Services, LLC (office property management and leasing), ResideBPG (residential property management and leasing), and BPGS Construction, LLC (construction management), oversee all aspects of project acquisition, finance, development, construction, leasing, operations, and disposition for its portfolio properties. The Buccini/Pollin Group has over 3,500 employees in 12 states. For more information, please visit www.bpgroup.net.

About PM-Hotel Group

PM Hotel Group is a top 25, award-winning hotel management company, operating full-service and select-service hotels in the Hilton, Marriott, Starwood, IHG and independent families of brands. Celebrating its 20-year anniversary, the company’s expertise covers all aspects of hotel operations, including development, technical consulting, marketing, accounting, and pre-opening services. The company manages nearly 40 hotel and development projects, comprised of more than 9,000 rooms, throughout the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., PM Hotel Group has participated in the development and acquisition/renovation of dozens of hotels with a market capitalization in excess of $1.5 billion. PM Hotel Group is an approved management company for all leading hotel brands. Additional information about the company may be found at www.pmhotelgroup.com.

About The Chemours Company

The Chemours Company (NYSE: CC) helps create a colorful, capable and cleaner world through the power of chemistry. Chemours is a global leader in titanium technologies, fluoroproducts and chemical solutions, providing its customers with solutions in a wide range of industries with market-defining products, application expertise and chemistry-based innovations. Chemours ingredients are found in plastics and coatings, refrigeration and air conditioning, mining and oil refining operations and general industrial manufacturing. Our flagship products include prominent brands such as Teflon™, Ti-Pure™, Krytox™, Viton™, Opteon™, Freon™ and Nafion™. Chemours has approximately 7,000 employees and 26 manufacturing sites serving approximately 4,000 customers in North America, Latin America, Asia-Pacific and Europe. Chemours is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware and is listed on the NYSE under the symbol CC. For more information please visit www.chemours.com.

The Buccini/Pollin Group Announces Purchase of the DuPont Building and Historic Hotel duPont

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