Microsoft leases space in Arlington’s Commonwealth Tower

Microsoft Corp. will open a sales headquarters in Arlington, expanding its presence in Northern Virginia, the tech giant’s president of U.S. regulated industries, Toni Townes-Whitley, announced Tuesday.

Microsoft — which announced in May 2020 that it would invest $64 million to expand in Reston Town Center in western Fairfax County, creating 1,500 jobs — will operate out of the Commonwealth Tower, located at 1300 Wilson Blvd. in Arlington, Townes-Whitley said in a statement.

The office space, which will undergo construction with plans to open in mid-2022, will be home to Microsoft’s U.S. regulated industries team, including Microsoft Federal.

According to commercial real estate firm Tishman Speyer, the 15-story Commonwealth Tower is 359,840 square feet. Townes-Whitley did not disclose the amount of square feet that Microsoft had leased and did not disclose the number of employees who would work there. However, a rendering posted by Townes-Whitley on LinkedIn appears to show Microsoft’s logo at the top of the building.

“From the facility to the location itself, everything about this project was planned with our customers in mind, creating a proximity that enables us to support their evolving needs,” Townes-Whitley said in a statement. “Additionally, this move unites our teams in the mid-Atlantic region, fostering a communal atmosphere that can inspire us to do our absolute best work.”

Microsoft established its first Virginia facility at Reston Town Center in 2002, the Innovation & Technology Conference Center. Since then, the company has built a corporate presence in Richmond and a data center in Mecklenburg County.

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