Amazon Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) has acquired the 122-acre Virginia Science and Technology Campus of George Washington University for $427 million.
The deal was initially announced Friday in the university’s student newspaper without Amazon being identified as a buyer. Amazon has yet to formally announce the transaction.
The company’s data services division is expected to build a data or information technology center at the property in Ashburn, Virginia. The deal will allow the university to remain on the property for up to five years as campus-based programs and university offices are relocated.
The university has opened the campus in 1991, which is home to more than 20 degree and certificate programs and 17 research labs, centers and institutes.
Bruno Fernandes, the university’s chief financial officer, said several buyers began approaching the school about roughly 18 months ago with interest in buying the property.
“This is a pivotal moment for the university,” Fernandes said in an interview. “This transaction will bolster our financial resources and provide us critical opportunities to deal with our priorities going forward.”
