Downtown Tucsonan - January 2008 - (Page 10)

Vital Signs Differing Perspec tives o n Downtown Commerci a l S pa ce 10 downtown tucsonan.january.08 kcehC ytilaeR kcehC ytilaeR by Tom Whittingslow here seems to be a wait-andsee attitude among prospective tenants before jumping into the downtown market. some are waiting to see what the city does in fast-tracking the new arena and convention hotel, while others are on the sidelines, waiting to see what government funding will produce. a few, who have attempted to find space, have expressed frustrations over the slow-moving approval process. others have had difficulty just finding space to buy or lease in a downtown area that has a small inventory of buildings, available or otherwise. unfortunately, tucson’s original zoning requirements didn’t anticipate the type of growth visualized by today’s redevelopment plans. according to Jeff diGregorio, a former urban planner and partner in the Royal Elizabeth Bed & Breakfast, recent overlays on downtown zoning have eased a lot of the pain. there are many rewards for those willing to jump in early. the secret to success seems to be patience in the process and passion for what you are doing. a market share analysis from costar Property database indicates a total of 3,085,884 square feet of existing rentable commercial space within a 1-mile radius of Granada and congress. Yet, within that area, only 201,260 square feet, or 6.5% of the space is available, at an average rate of $18.75 per square foot. according to thomas J. nieman, Principal of commercial Properties for PIcoR, tucson’s downtown vacancy rate is lower than comparable cities. PIcoR represents more office properties than any other company in town by a 2 to 1 margin. “when the county bought the Bank of america building, about 30,000 square feet of office space went off the market. there isn’t much retail space down there, and most of the storefront stuff is represented by the owners,” nieman concluded. a good example of a successful conversion of older retail space is the Gibson property on 6th avenue. Johnny Gibson’s family has been downtown property owners for more than 40 years. they recently leased 9,300 square feet in the old Johnny Gibson Gym Equipment store to the drawing studio. Paul Mohr, owner of the studio, describes it as a group of teaching artists who deal with adult, teen and senior education in the creation of art—similar to the art students’ League in new York. the Gibson’s adjacent 6,000-square-foot building is leased to the Beowulf alley theatre T company. Both structures have undergone extensive renovation and upgrading. Mohr’s experience with the approval process has been positive. He is putting the finishing touches on the interior. “the city’s doing triple backflips to help us out. the inspectors have been great; they’ve bent over backwards to get things done right and approved.” steve Gibson—Johnny’s son—feels that downtown has fulfilled his family’s dreams. Back in the 1950s his father was a barber in the santa Rita Hotel and through the years he purchased property on 6th avenue. “when the downtown areas of most of the country were in a downward spiral due to the advent of suburban malls, we stuck it out,” says Gibson. “after 51 years we shut the gym equipment company down. our goal has been to turn it into successful income property and we’re achieving that goal.” around the corner on congress street, williams & dame of Portland, oregon is converting the former MLK building into 85 market-rate and 11 affordable apartments, and building 9,200 square feet of new retail space. Meanwhile, the Post is moving forward with its multi-use condominium project. “when we get one or two of them under our belt, a lot of great things will follow,” says Gibson, a Realtor with Realty Executives. the Post is the first new condominium project in downtown tucson—aside from renovation projects such as academy Lofts or Ice House Lofts—in many years. oscar turner of Bourn Partners says the overall project—including the Indian Village trading Post building (the business with that name has relocated to La Placita Village), the new building at congress and scott, and the annex on congress—contains approximately 20,000 square feet of space that could be configured into retail shops and restaurants. “we are currently in negotiations with a number of interested tenants,” said turner, who is seeking a high-visibility restaurant for the trading Post Building. “It would help if the city was willing to provide a financial incentive for merchants willing to expand their business downtown,” turner said. Buzz Isaacson has sold the unisource Energy tower twice and his firm recently negotiated the lease of the tower’s penthouse to Ecolab, a $5 billion-per-year, st Paul-based chemical company that was previously located in the Butterfield Business Park. due to his prominence in the market, Buzz Isaacson may be the most

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Downtown Tucsonan - January 2008

Downtown Tucsonan - January 2008 Contents From the Editor Downtown Lowdown Vital Signs Downtown Restaurants & Cafes Downtown Live Arts Galleries Performance Film Events Museums Historic Downtown Billboard Classifieds

Downtown Tucsonan - January 2008

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