Columbia Property Trust, Inc., announced its plans to buy the 1916 office tower at 149 Madison Ave., as well as to renovate it, and sharply raise the rents.

The firm plans “to create value through repositioning and re-leasing the full building,” said Nelson Mills, president and CEO of Columbia Property Trust.

The 12-story, 127,000-square-foot building is subject to a ground lease that expires in January 2018 with fully coterminous tenant leases. At expiration, Columbia will own a fee simple interest in both the land and building. The buyer didn’t disclose the price it paid, except to call it “an attractive discount to replacement cost.”

“With over $600 million in proceeds available from our recently completed disposition program, the purchase of 149 Madison is a promising start to our plan to put capital to work in our target markets,” Mills said.

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