Originally published on April 19, 2021, by Larry Getlen for CommercialObserver.com.
Clockworks Analytics makes building software that, among other benefits, helps to build owners optimize energy performance and improve indoor air quality.
It’s little surprise, then, that for Clockworks, like for many other product makers in the environmental prop-tech space, business is booming.
Originally published on April 19, 2021 by Eric Butterman for WealthManagement.com.
Even amid a pandemic, the construction pipeline for data centers in the U.S. has kept growing. While in 2019, 4.92 million Rentable Building Area (RBA) sq. ft. of data centers were built and renovated, according to CoStar Advisory Service, last year the figure rose to 6.78 RBA million sq. ft. The planned pipeline for 2021 is now at 7.66 million RBA sq. ft. The CoStar data “largely includes properties under construction, but maybe missing renovations of existing space as research continues to investigate these,” notes Juan Arias, senior consultant with the CoStar Group.
There were some initial hiccups in construction plans as the pandemic took hold last year. For example, Facebook went from spending well north of $10 billion on data center construction in 2019 to announcing a delay in data center expansion in March of 2020. By September, however, it revealed a planned $1.5 million sq. ft. expansion of a data center in Georgia, as it became clear that home-bound consumers were contributing to a significant uptick in data storage needs. Facebook’s expansion deal was one of many similar announcements made in the data center space starting in the second quarter of 2020. Even Goldman Sachs got into the act by announcing in October a $500 million investment in a global data center platform.
Originally published by Marta Soncodi for NAIOP's Spring 2021 Issue.
Investing in smart building technology may not be seen as a priority after commercial real estate investments were hit especially hard in 2020. However, if improving tenant experience was being considered before the pandemic, it’s now an imperative.
Why should commercial real estate owners consider investing in smart building technology upgrades? Based on research and industry analysis, fully integrated smart systems can increase building efficiency, optimize facility operations, improve occupant safety, security and wellbeing, and enhance end-user preferences. And, in light of the pandemic, stakeholders — commercial real estate companies, building owners, managers, and tenants — should examine the competitive advantages of smart building technology.
A few spots are still available to attend the Spring Social at The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery! We will be gathering in an outdoor space and request that each attendee self-certifies they are symptom-free and sign a waiver in advance. This is a NAIOP Charlotte Member Only Event.
Registration
Registration is $15 for members.
Location
This event will be held at The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery 4150 Yancey Road, Charlotte, NC 28217.
Questions
If you have questions, please contact the NAIOP Charlotte office at [email protected].
Originally published by Brent Carroll for NAIOP's Spring 2021 Issue.
For residents of a certain age in Portland, Oregon, the phrase “meet me under the clock” meant the clock on the main floor of the Meier & Frank department store, which first opened nearly 150 years ago. The 16-story terracotta landmark building at 555 Southwest Morrison Street encompasses an entire city block near Pioneer Courthouse Square, widely known as “Portland’s living room.”
In November 2016, a new era for the Meier & Frank Building began when KBS purchased the asset for $54 million in a joint venture with private development firm Sterling Bay with the intent of repositioning the property. Converting part of a beloved former department store into a fully leased Class A mixed-use space while preserving the historical integrity of the original property required hard work as well as some creative problem-solving.
Originally published on April 9, 2021 by Brielle Scott for NAIOP Blog.
The disruption caused by COVID-19 has accelerated the blending of brick-and-mortar retail and logistics real estate. This has resulted in the emergence of a new hybrid store model – one that takes omnichannel strategies to the next level and promises to revolutionize the retail, industrial and logistics industries.
In a recent NAIOP webinar, John Morris, head of industrial and retail, CBRE, and Andres Rodriquez, senior research analyst, CBRE, shared their vision for a hybrid store that preserves the store experience for physical shopping while leveraging logistics capabilities for the fulfillment of online sales.
Rodriquez started the discussion by sharing some historical data. According to data between 2010-2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, online retail sales were growing about 16% per year, while in-store retail sales were growing about 3% per year. In response to that, retailers had been focusing heavily on rolling out their online platforms to meet consumer demand.
Originally published by Gary Tasman on March 30, 2021, for NAIOP.com.
If nothing else, 2020 taught us that we can all adapt to changing conditions and learn how to navigate through radical shifts in how we function day-to-day. This is the case not only for individuals and families but also for businesses. Millions of business owners and managers were forced to radically reinvent their business models to remain solvent during the COVID-19 crisis. This is especially true of the restaurant industry, which is rapidly accelerating new and pre-existing trends.
Stay-at-home regulations, social distancing, and public apprehension have forced restaurants to shift their models significantly to focus on delivery and carry-out to stay profitable. Fortunately for many establishments, this quick-service restaurant trend had already emerged pre-pandemic. Restaurants that had already embraced this shift were better positioned to weather the storm produced by COVID-19.
Originally published on March 3, 2021, by Kathryn Hamilton for NAIOP.org.
NAIOP is again partnering with CEL & Associates, Inc. to compile the 2021 NAIOP/CEL Commercial Real Estate Compensation and Benefits Survey. A nationally known real estate advisor, CEL has conducted this survey –the largest in the industry – for 32 consecutive years.
Complete the survey by April 30.
Both chambers of Congress return to Washington, D.C., this week from a two-week recess, prepared to begin work on President Joe Biden’s American Jobs Plan, an approximately $2.4 trillion package to fund infrastructure investments, research and development, clean energy tax credits, and expansion of Medicaid coverage for long-term care services, among others. Biden is scheduled to meet with Republican and Democrat leaders to begin talks on achieving a bipartisan bill, but the White House and Democrats have signaled their intent to pursue the budget reconciliation process if a bipartisan agreement is too difficult. Budget reconciliation allows legislation to pass the Senate with a simple majority, rather than the 60 votes usually required to avoid a filibuster.
In January 2020, representatives from the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization (CRTPO) publicly launched Beyond 77, a project focused on improving travel along the I-77 Corridor from Statesville, N.C. to Rock Hill, S.C. To date, over 19,000 surveys have been completed in an effort to prioritize transportation alternatives for the area. In early April, the third and final public engagement phase kicked off, where participants are asked to weigh in on potential solutions. Residents who live, work or travel through this region are encouraged to participate in the study by visiting Beyond77.com and taking a brief survey.
For those who want to hear directly from the planning team, representatives from the Beyond 77 study will be hosting two Virtual Public Meetings on April 21 and May 13 from noon to 1 p.m.
To learn more about the public meetings and to register, visit Beyond77.com/Register.
Originally published on April 6, 2021, for NAIOP Source E-Newsletter.
President Joe Biden has unveiled his American Jobs Plan, a $2.3 trillion plan to fund infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges and railways, but also what the administration terms “human infrastructure” investments in childcare, as well as measures to transform the energy sector toward a carbon-free future. In order to fund the plan, the Biden administration proposes to raise the corporate tax rate from the current 21% to 28% and would seek a global minimum tax for multinational corporations.
Thank you to our many members who showed up to speak at the virtual public hearing on the draft Charlotte Future 2040 Plan. Mayor Lyles announced that the vote will be pushed to June 28,2021 to allow for more public input. We look forward to continuing to work with members of City Council and planning staff to assist in completion of the plan.
As part of the continued request for public input, the City of Charlotte has scheduled the first three virtual town halls.
Thursday, April 8 at 5:30 PM – Hosted by Council Member Malcolm Graham
Topic: Anti-Displacement in Vulnerable Neighborhoods (Creating Great Neighborhoods)
Originally published by Andrew McCoy, Ph.D., and Amin Yeganeh, Ph.D. in March 2021 for NAIOP's Research Foundation.
The construction industry has historically been slow to develop or adopt new technologies, resulting in productivity growth that has lagged other sectors. However, protracted labor shortages have increased demand for labor and time-saving technologies, and recent advances have given rise to a new generation of more efficient, flexible and adaptive construction technologies. Successfully adopting these new technologies will require that firms evaluate their costs, benefits and risks and update construction practices as needed.
The NAIOP Research Foundation commissioned this report to explore emerging construction technologies and their implications for the construction and real estate development industries. The authors draw from interviews with researchers and industry practitioners to evaluate the current benefits and limitations of new technologies. This report:
Originally published by Andrew McCoy, Ph.D., and Amin Yeganeh, Ph.D. in March 2021 for NAIOP's Research Foundation.
The construction industry has historically been slow to develop or adopt new technologies, resulting in productivity growth that has lagged other sectors. However, protracted labor shortages have increased demand for labor and time-saving technologies, and recent advances have given rise to a new generation of more efficient, flexible and adaptive construction technologies. Successfully adopting these new technologies will require that firms evaluate their costs, benefits and risks and update construction practices as needed.
The NAIOP Research Foundation commissioned this report to explore emerging construction technologies and their implications for the construction and real estate development industries. The authors draw from interviews with researchers and industry practitioners to evaluate the current benefits and limitations of new technologies. This report:
Originally published by Trey Barrineau for NAIOP Spring 2021 Issue
In late 2020, the U.S. and other countries began distributing vaccines to control the COVID-19 pandemic. It is the single most important development in the year-long fight against the disease, which has killed and sickened millions around the world and crippled the global economy.
The stakes are high. The vaccines will not only save lives and boost the morale of hundreds of millions who have been forced to live constrained lives due to lockdowns and other public health measures; experts say they are also the most important factor in the overall economic recovery from the pandemic. The commercial real estate industry has been hit hard by the pandemic, particularly the retail, office, and lodging sectors.
“If we get 70% to 85% of the country vaccinated by the end of the summer, I believe by the time we get to the fall, we will be approaching a degree of normality,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief medical advisor to President Biden, said in late January. “It’s not going to be perfectly normal, but one that I think will take a lot of pressure off the American public.”
As the U.S. enters year two of the COVID-19 pandemic, strip centers and malls, which have had most of the exposure to retail tenants that have struggled from a sales perspective, stand at the greatest chance of experiencing property-level distress in the months to come, according to Kevin Cody, the senior consultant at real estate data firm CoStar Advisory Services.
CoStar expects the average vacancy rate for malls across the country to climb by around 3.1 percentage points between the fourth quarter of 2019 and the fourth quarter of 2021, Cody notes. At the same time, the vacancy rate for neighborhood shopping centers and freestanding retail will likely climb by only 1.3 percentage points and 0.4 percentage points, respectively.
Originally published on March 30, 2021, for NAIOP Source E-Newsletter
President Joe Biden is expected to unveil his plans for an infrastructure and economic growth proposal amounting to nearly $4 trillion while on a visit to Pittsburgh this Wednesday. The package is expected to be divided into two parts, with the first part focused on infrastructure investments for transportation and initiatives related to Biden’s efforts to address climate change. The second package will be geared toward domestic initiatives such as national childcare programs, free community college, and universal pre-kindergarten.
Originally published on March 26, 2021, by Cary Chandler and Ellen Lieder for NAIOP
Although the long-term impacts of the pandemic on the office environment are yet to be determined, many knowledge workers could eventually go back to the office. When workers return to urban office towers, they may anticipate an exceptional experience that delivers more than their home office could offer: a workplace destination that has community attractions they’ve craved over several months of remote work.
While in the short term, building owners are addressing immediate safety issues and protocols, the longer-term reality is looming. As a private, dedicated workspace has become a luxury rather than a given, the need to deliver more than places to perform tasks has become an imperative. The workplace must now deliver a first impression that will serve as an impetus for community building and shared purpose, productive individual spaces, and “third places” (neither home nor office) that support innovation and collaboration.
All of that might seem like a tall order, even for high-rise office buildings. Here are a few ways office building owners in downtown Chicago are reinventing their properties as urban workplace destinations.
Date: April 7, 2021
Day/Time: 2-3 p.m. ET
Location: Virtual
Exclusive NAIOP Developing Leaders Program for Members in our Southwest Chapters
What are the big legislative issues facing businesses in your market? NAIOP Developing Leaders from our Southwest chapters are invited to an exclusive program to hear from industry and legislative leaders on these pressing issues:
Engage in a discussion with both CRE practitioners and lobbyists who work with chapters in your market, then break into smaller groups for deeper discussions and networking.
The disruption caused by COVID-19 has accelerated the blending of brick-and-mortar retail and logistics real estate. This has resulted in the emergence of a new hybrid store model – one that takes omnichannel strategies to the next level and promises to revolutionize the retail, industrial and logistics industries. In this webinar, speakers from CBRE will share their vision for a hybrid store that allows consumers to engage and purchase seamlessly in store and online across a wide range of retail categories and product lines. This new model will preserve the store experience for physical shopping while leveraging logistics capabilities for the fulfillment of online sales.
Speakers:
John Morris, Head of Industrial and Retail, CBRE
Andres Rodriquez, Senior Research Analyst, CBRE
This webinar is part of a six-part series on industrial-focused topics hosted by NAIOP throughout 2021.
