Originally published on December 3, 2024, by Maria Gatea for NAIOP.

U.S. cities have experienced massive expansion across all real estate sectors over the past 44 years, according to recent StorageCafe research that looked at residential and commercial construction activity between 1980 and 2023.

Along with residential construction, industrial, office, retail and self-storage spaces have grown significantly, although the scale and pace of development differ among regions and asset types.

Industrial real estate boom, driven by e-commerce and manufacturing revival

Almost 29.3 billion square feet of industrial space have been delivered across the United States since 1980, representing about half of the country’s overall inventory.

Originally published on November 18, 2024, by Alexandra Both for NAIOP.

What is the best place to live in the U.S.? The answer varies, but livability often means striking the right balance between cost of living, city amenities, and quality of life. RentCafe.com measured livability in 139 metro areas using 17 metrics divided into three categories: socioeconomics, quality of life, and location and community.

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Originally published on November 5, 2024 by Shawn Moura, Ph.D. for NAIOP.

NAIOP Research Foundation Governors, Visionaries and Distinguished Fellows met in Las Vegas in October to discuss development challenges associated with water and power scarcity and possible research topics for future exploration. A panel, moderated by Marianna Hunnicutt, practice builder at Kimley-Horn, discussed how the development community in Las Vegas is working with utilities and municipal leaders to meet sustainability objectives and ensure access to water and power for future projects.

Michael Bernardo, enterprise conservation division manager at Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA), provided an overview of how Southern Nevada is planning for future development while facing a limited supply of water from the Colorado River, which supplies 90% of the community’s water. Southern Nevada receives 1.8% of the river’s flow annually as part of an agreement with neighboring states. SNWA augments this supply by treating any water that enters an indoor drain and returning it to the river. Every gallon returned to the river is one that SNWA can pump back out from Lake Meade. Water conservation efforts are focused on limiting uses that do not return water to the sanitary sewer. Evaporative cooling in the form of cooling towers and swamp coolers currently represents the second largest use of water after landscaping, which uses 50-60% of the available water supply.

Steve Neiger, principal/managing broker, CAST, and Rod Martin, senior vice president, Majestic Realty, explained how NAIOP Southern Nevada worked with SNWA to come up with a workable plan to limit evaporative cooling. The water authority explained to the development community that if no limits were placed on evaporative cooling, all new construction would have to come to a halt within several years. NAIOP Southern Nevada made it clear that a complete ban on all evaporative coolers would impose large costs on existing buildings and would force many to close if they could not be retrofitted with new roofs or expanded power capacity to support new HVAC systems. As a compromise, since the end of last year, evaporative cooling systems are now prohibited from being installed on new projects or added to existing buildings, but buildings with existing evaporative cooling systems can keep them.

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Originally published on October 1, 2024, by the IRS.

The Internal Revenue Service announced today tax relief for individuals and businesses in the entire state of North Carolina that were affected by Hurricane Helene which began on Sept. 25, 2024. These taxpayers now have until May 1, 2025, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.

Following the disaster declaration issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), individuals and households that reside or have a business in the entire state qualify for tax relief.

Affected taxpayers with returns and payments with due dates postponed until Feb. 3, 2025, due to Tropical Storm Debby in North Carolina (NC-2024-07) will also now have until May 1, 2025, to file and/or pay.

Originally published on October 9, 2024, by Marie Ruff for NAIOP.

“We’re in a really unique point in history in the sense that we have this huge demand curve for data centers at a time when we also have some constraints in power,” said Elissa Wilson, attorney, Vorys, Sater, Seymour & Pease, LLP, to begin a panel discussion on data center development at NAIOP’s CRE.Converge. “But the reason data centers are so important is they are fundamental to our modern economy. They’re fundamental to our way of life. They’re fundamental to every single transaction that happens online.”

“Every single person in this room accesses a data center in some way, shape, or form every single day, and probably every single time you use your phone,” said Tony Burkart, head of market development and economic development, at Google. Even a simple task like navigating directions to a local restaurant uses a data center.

Contrary to the perceptions of some state and local governments that data centers take up large amounts of land and power without being offset by large gains in jobs, Burkart said data center development is a catalyst for growth in economies. The primary impacts are data center construction and operations, he said, but also in the wider economy through all the different business services that are enabled using our phones and other digitized tools like AI and the cloud.

Iredell County Commissioners recently directed staff to initiate a text amendment to its land development code that would have, among other things, limited density to one unit per five-acre parcel in some parts of the county.  The measure was drafted and presented to the Iredell County Planning Board during last week's meeting where it was considered and debated.  Some board members expressed concern about the adverse impact this amendment could have on housing affordability.  Ultimately, it was determined the proposal necessitated additional discussion and it was tabled for the time being.  We will continue to weigh in as the measure receives future consideration.   

View Text Ammendment

The City of Concord will hold its next wastewater allocation meeting on Tuesday, June 25th at 11:00 am.  Here are additional details as well as the meeting packet (over 400 pages, may take a while to download).

The City of Concord will hold its next wastewater allocation meeting on Tuesday, June 25th at 11:00 am.  Here are additional details as well as the meeting packet (over 400 pages, may take a while to download).

Originally published on April 29, 2024, by Jay Biggins for NAIOP.

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, many downtowns across the country remain disquietingly vacant. Office towers that once hummed with activity are a bit quieter, the hallways emptier. The U.S. has the highest office vacancy rates – 18.4% – since 1992. Some levels of hybrid and remote work are here to stay, and now the commercial real estate landscape faces some tough decisions, offering both challenges, which are clear, and unique opportunities, which are less well-defined but coming into focus.

Where companies used to require space for virtually all their workers, hybrid work models mean fewer people in the office and, thus, less need for so much square footage. Now, all across the nation’s downtown areas, developers and owners are asking what the future of the “office” looks like. How do we utilize the space that’s available?

The biggest obstacles confront Class B and C office buildings, often in less desirable locations, lacking amenities and/or technology. These properties have the emptiest space, and many have no viable future as office space.

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The recently passed North Carolina State Budget contains millions of dollars for Union County to make sorely needed improvements to its water and sewer systems.  The final version contains the following funding allocations:

• Union County Water/Sewer - $26,000,000
• Waxhaw Greywater System - $1,500,000
• Wingate Water/Sewer System - $12,000,000
• Marshville Water/Sewer - $1,000,000
• Muddy Creek Water/Sewer - $11,000,000 

These funds are significant and should assist in enabling the County and associated municipalities to meet its current and immediate future water/sewer infrastructure needs.  The bill will become effective on October 2nd as Governor Cooper has announced his intention to let it become law without his signature.  To view the State Budget in its entirety, click this link.

On April 10, 2023, the Mooresville Town Board established a working group for the purpose of evaluating and exploring the feasibility of implementing a development moratorium.  

The working group has completed its assignment and its recommendations are as follows:

• Complete the update of the OneMooresville Plan and the UDO to better align future growth.
• As part of the OneMooresville Plan and the UDO, identify areas with adequate infrastructure and encourage development in those areas that are walkable and provide access to other multimodal transportation choices.
• Identify and investigate areas which are not possible to serve with existing town resources to determine if these areas qualify for a limited moratorium.
• When the housing study is complete, integrate the findings into the UDO and OneMooresville Plan with the goal of achieving an appropriate balance of housing options.
• Continue to investigate local transportation bonds and federal and state grant opportunities to improve intersections and other mobility options such as sidewalks, greenways, micro-transit, and expansion of the Mooresville Main bus system. Annexation decisions should include critical analysis of the ability to provide complete and adequate infrastructure and services such as school capacity, utilities, multimodal transportation, and public safety.
• All new development project decisions should include a review of by-right and previously approved developments to determine the total impact of the project on the surrounding area.
• Promote the implementation of the Traffic Management Center to manage current road infrastructure.

Originally published on May 19, 2023, by Kathryn Hamilton, CAE for NAIOP.

The Boston seaport has been continually reshaped since the 1800s, devolving from what was once a thriving area of commerce to acres of muddy parking lots and a few restaurants. Today, it is being reimagined again in a rapid and remarkable transformation that includes soaring office and lab towers, high-end residential, and all the retail services you could imagine.

Members of NAIOP’s National Forums toured two components of the seaport during their annual Symposium this week in Boston, hearing from the developers, investors and advisors shaping the site today.

Boston Global Investors is a leading partner and developer of Seaport Square, a 6.3 million square foot urban revitalization and the city’s largest master-planned community to date. Kevin Benedix, chief operating officer and chief financial officer, walked Forums members through the history of the project, its inspiration, and how it’s continued to evolve.

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Originally published on February 15, 2023, by Toby Burke for NAIOP E-Newsletter.

Cities and counties are increasingly adopting local ordinances that are intended to spur the electrification of our transportation system in order to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from fossil fuels. A survey by The U.S. Conference of Mayors identified electric vehicles (EVs) “as the most promising technology for reducing energy use and carbon emissions in their cities.” Local efforts to support the use of EVs by both the public and private sectors will require the development and expansion of a reliable and sustainable EV charging system.

Efforts by mayors and local governments to transform the nation’s transportation system from fossil-fueled vehicles to electric ones has been boosted by the federal government and the private automobile industry. Both the Biden Administration and major U.S. carmakers – Ford, General Motors and Stellantis (Chrysler) – have set aspirational goals for EVs to account for 50% of all vehicle sales by 2030. These aspirational goals reflect growing consumer interest for electric vehicles that will further accelerate the demand for a sustainable EV charging network across the United States.

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Originally published on November 8, 2022, for NAIOP E-Newsletter.

While most of the political establishment in the nation’s capital is focused on the midterm congressional elections, federal agency staff are still moving forward on developing regulations from legislation enacted this year. The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service last Friday issued their Priority Guidance Plan for 2022-2023, detailing their top regulatory priorities for the next year.

A major focus of the plan is the clean-energy tax provisions contained in the Inflation Reduction Act that was passed by Congress in August. These include measures on tax credits for electric vehicles, clean-energy manufacturing, and energy-efficiency incentives for commercial real estate and other industries. The plan also includes projects on the newly enacted corporate alternative minimum tax, the tax on corporate stock repurchases, and manufacturing incentives for the semiconductor industry.

The Treasury Department and the IRS will update the plan during the year to add additional items that become priorities as a result of legislative developments, or as a result of input from public comments on proposed regulations.

Priority Guidance Plan

Previous planning studies related to the Downtown include the 2006 Downtown Master Plan and the 2040 Community Plan.  The 2022 Downtown Plan will both update the 2006 Plan and follow adopted 2040 Plan policies and action priorities.  The Plan will be reviewed by the Huntersville Planning Board and eventually considered for adoption by the Huntersville Town Board of Commissioners. 

The most recent public forum was held on October 20th with about 80 people attending.  The presentation links are listed here for your review:

• Final Draft Presentation 1 of 4 (PDF)
• Final Draft Presentation 2 of 4 (PDF)
• Final Draft Presentation 3 of 4 (PDF)
• Final Draft Presentation 4 of 4 (PDF)

Once you have had a chance to view the presentation, please complete the survey which will be open until Monday, October 31st at 5:00 PM. 

For additional details about the plan please visit:

Let's Plan Huntersville

By Trey Barrineau

Industrial properties are often built near neighborhoods, but that isn’t always popular with the residents, who have legitimate concerns about noise, traffic and pollution from the increased volume of trucks and vans.

A recent NAIOP online panel discussion examined how developers can work with local communities to address these worries through outreach and engagement, as well as with design and technological innovations.

“Education is key to establishing that relationship early on,” said Sven Tustin, executive vice president with Conor Commercial, who moderated the panel. “The developer has to listen to concerns. Residents look at a site plan that shows 200 dock doors, and they assume that there will be 200 trucks coming in and out 24/7.”

Bonds on November Ballot For Charlotte, Gastonia

On Nov. 8, Gastonia residents will vote on a $75 million Transportation General Obligation Bond Referendum. The City Council approved the bond referendum at its Aug. 2 meeting.  

Proposed projects include:

• Street and road repairs
• Pedestrian walkways (sidewalks)
• Street resurfacing
• Utility relocations
• Street intersection improvements
• Street light improvements

For more information, visit this link.       

Charlotte voters will also have the opportunity to vote on a $226 million bond package that will upgrade and enhance streets, build housing for low-to moderate-income individuals and families, and improve infrastructure in the city's older neighborhoods and emerging high-growth areas.