New home for FSU Foundation

http://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2016/03/08/fsu-foundation-purchases-college-avenue-building-new-headquarters/81480164/

"Florida State University continues to add to its downtown Tallahassee footprint with the purchase of the FICPA Building at 325 W. College Avenue.
The FSU Foundation completed the purchase of the three-story, 27,690-square-foot building on College near Bronough for $4 million in January, Tom Jennings, vice president for university advancement and foundation president, told FSU trustees Friday.
The current tenants, The Florida Institute of CPAs (FICPA), Meenan P.A. and Kittelson and Associates, Inc., will be leaving the building by December 2017 to relocate to new sites.
At that time, the FSU Foundation will begin renovations and take occupancy by July 2018, Jennings said.
“This is an important and exciting milestone in the FSU Foundation’s history,” Jennings said. “This purchase ultimately saves the Foundation money and allows it to invest in a substantial asset instead of paying rent.  More important, this new location will send a strong message that private philanthropy is vital to FSU’s future health and to the success of our current and future students.”
The purchase comes on the heels of February’s announcement by FSU President John Thrasher that Brian and Kathryn Ballard were donating a building valued at $1.1 million to house the Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship and the Jim Moran Institute for Global Entrepreneurship. The 19,000-square-foot building is located at 111 S. Monroe St.        .
Andy Jhanji, executive vice president of the FSU Foundation, said the organization operates out of 35,000-square-feet of rented space at 2010 Levy Ave., southwest of the main campus.
It has more than 133 employees. About 100 will be moving into the new College Avenue location, with the rest working on campus.
Jhanji said the downtown purchase is critical to promoting the foundation’s visibility and improving access for donors, foundation board members and university officials. In addition, it is convenient to the university’s planned Arena District near the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center, where a new College of Business, convention center and hotel are being proposed, and the existing College of Law.
“We are right pretty much between the Capitol and the main campus, which is a perfect location," Jhanji said.
FICPA and the FSU Real Estate Foundation began exploring this potential opportunity nearly a year ago, said Kevin Graham, executive director of FSU’s Real Estate Foundation, which as a Direct Support Organization, advises the university on real estate acquisitions, development initiatives, gifts and donations.
Graham said this prominent location fulfills a longstanding desire of the FSU Foundation to relocate its operations closer to campus.  Similarly, the FSU Foundation’s presence fits well into the city of Tallahassee’s vision for investment into the College Avenue corridor, leading from downtown to the campus.
“Relocating the Foundation to College Avenue is most appropriate. It reinforces a “town and gown” theme, and builds long-term value for the community by further defining the collegiate character of this corridor,” Graham said. “It’s important that the university's development patterns occurring over the next several years are intentional.”