(WASHINGTON) The White House landlord says he’s not going to renew the lease on the building when it comes due in June, citing plans for developing condos on the property.
“Look, this isn’t political,” Jack Reid, whose company has owned the leasing rights for 15 years, assured. “We’ve leased to Democrat and Republican administrations. But I’m ready to go in a different direction with the property.
“It’s prime real estate and I’ve been thinking about taking it commercial for quite some time,” Reid continued. “It’s got a lot of potential, and frankly, taking the property condo will dramatically increase our revenue, so that’s what we’re going to do.”
Asked what the current and future administrations are supposed to do when it comes to housing presidents, Reid responded, “Well, that’s not my problem.”
“I don’t care where they go in the future, but after the current lease runs out, all I know is, they’re not going to be staying at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue,” he said, adding that his company has “other properties” to lease.
“We can talk about that,” Reid said.
