VCU hopes to acquire Altria building in Richmond for $150M

Virginia Commonwealth University has signed a letter of intent to acquire Altria Group’s 450,000-square-foot building in downtown Richmond for $150 million, but whether VCU could move forward with the purchase hinges upon approval from the General Assembly.

During a February subcommittee meeting of the school’s board of visitors, VCU Chief Financial Officer Meredith Weiss revealed that the university signed the letter of intent to purchase the site at 601 E. Jackson St. According to online tax records, the 4.3-acre property has an assessed value of $275.97 million. For more than a year, VCU has eyed buying the nine-story facility, which includes research labs, a vivarium and academic space.

VCU hopes the purchase would allow it to expand its Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center by adding more research lab space. It also wants to use the space to grow enrollment in VCU’s new School of Public Health and School of Pharmacy.

Beyond meeting the cancer center’s needs “quickly and urgently,” Weiss said, the site can grow research across all of the university’s health sciences.

“In my opinion, it’s just an opportunity of a lifetime for VCU,” Weiss told the committee. “It really is. It’s an incredible facility. It’s in excellent condition.”

Constructing a similar facility would cost roughly $715 million, she added. At the subcommittee meeting, Weiss recalled colleagues informing her that the Altria building had wet labs and office space that could be used for academic initiatives and that the building was not likely being utilized to its full capacity. She reached out and spoke with Altria’s CFO to see if there was an interest in selling the facility, and “there was.”

The acquisition is not a done deal, however. VCU spokesperson Michael R. Porter noted that while the university is “actively” seeking to purchase the Altria facility, it still requires authorization and funding approval from the state government.

“VCU has requested funding from the state to support the acquisition,” Porter said in an email. “Since VCU needs state funding approval to move forward, it is too early to provide details about a closing date, occupancy or renovation costs, though we expect the facility will need renovations before VCU occupies it.”

The matter is being considered in the state budget this year, and budget negotiators are expected to work on the matter until the session adjourns sine die on Saturday.

Porter stressed that VCU needs the facility to support its growing health sciences academic programming and research enterprise.

Altria previously said that if it reached a deal with VCU and the sale were to close, it would likely build a new research facility at Philip Morris USA’s Manufacturing Center complex.

An Altria spokesperson declined to comment on the timeline of a potential acquisition or on Altria’s plans for the site, noting that approvals are still pending in the General Assembly.