The Weitz Co., an architectural, engineering and construction firm with deep roots in Des Moines, is relocating its corporate headquarters and other company divisions to a downtown office building that will soon undergo a $23.3 million renovation, a company official said.

Weitz will move into a five-story building at 611 Fifth Ave. that is owned by Knapp Properties.

“Our goal at the end of the day is to bring all of our employees back under the same roof,” said Mike Tousley, executive vice president at Weitz, which currently leases office space in two buildings, one downtown and another at 63rd Street and Park Avenue. The company will move about 200 employees to the 611 Fifth Ave. building, constructed in 1954 and originally home to Central Life Insurance Co.

When Tousley began working at Weitz about 35 years ago, all of the company’s divisions were located in a building at 800 Second Ave., he said. The building was razed to make way for Wells Fargo Arena, he said.

Knapp Properties has owned the property at 611 Fifth Ave. since 1999. About three years ago, the company attempted to get officials from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines interested in leasing space in the building, said Chris Costa, Knapp Properties CEO and president. Knapp Properties worked with Substance Architecture on new design plans for the building and with Weitz on construction plans.

When Home Loan Bank officials instead decided to buy a six-story office building at 909 Locust St., Weitz officials said they were interested in leasing space in 611 Fifth Ave.

“As a result of going through that process and seeing the work that Substance did on what this building could be really got us excited about it,” Tousley said. In addition, when Weitz had crews working on the Hilton Downtown Des Moines located just north of the office building, the construction company set up offices in the building’s first floor, he said.

“The more time we spent around [the building], the more excitement was created,” he said.

Tousley said Weitz officials are attracted to the office building for several reasons: It’s downtown, it’s located near Interstate Highway 235 and across the street from a hotel, its surface parking is available to the east of the building, and it’s connected to the downtown skywalk system.

“When we started looking at all of those factors, that’s when I ramped up our conversations with [Costa] about trying to figure out a way to make this work for both of us,” Tousley said.

Costa said Knapp Properties needed a partner such as Weitz to make renovating the building make sense financially.

“This is not going to be an inexpensive proposition from the landlord perspective,” Costa said. “We needed a great partner like Weitz to come along and make this a reality.”
         
While Weitz doesn’t have any ownership in the building, it will be a tenant, leasing about 45% of the structure’s space, Costa said. The company has also been hired to rehabilitate the building’s shell.  

Work to remove asbestos in the building will likely begin in early 2021 after a current tenant leaves, Costa said. He estimated it would take about six months to remove the asbestos and another 12 months or longer to complete renovations. The work could be done by mid-2022 at the earliest, Costa said.

Renovation plans include upgrading the building’s energy and mechanical systems, replacing windows to restore the original look of the building, and adding an accessible entrance for people with disabilities. Other renovations would occur inside the building that would give the structure a more modern feel, Costa has said.

The project is expected to receive tax-increment financing from the city of Des Moines over 15 years, capped at $3.8 million, or about 16% of renovation costs. It’s estimated the project will generate $15. 5 million in tax revenue over 30 years, according to city documents.

The property in 2019 was valued at $2 million, Polk County records show.

Weitz officials had considered moving out of Des Moines, Tousley said. 
        
“We thought about it, but not for very long,” he said. “The company started in Des Moines. I think the sentiment was that we really wanted to preserve that history of maintaining a Des Moines address.”