Lots of Commercial Available

[PBJ]

I was just out by the airport, and I noticed the Patterson/44th Corridor is still full of empty buildings just sitting there. Anyone have any stats on the "free space" in Kent County? Some of those spaces have been sitting for years with no occupants. Are the owners just losing their shirts with all that open space?

Just curious, not sure how that all works, just seems 100's of thousands of sq. ft. sitting empty is a bad thing if you paid/pay for the building.

[Josh]

Maybe the downtown post office would move into one of these empty places; I'm sure these building owners would gladly welcome them. There would be plenty of room for expansion which is not available at their current location. Let's hope they can free up their prime riverfront place soon...

[Nitro]

Maybe the downtown post office would move into one of these empty places; I'm sure these building owners would gladly welcome them. There would be plenty of room for expansion which is not available at their current location. Let's hope they can free up their prime riverfront place soon...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The post office would be quite happy to move. The spot they are in is a logistical nightmare for getting trucks in and out of. I know Devos has been working with them on this to free up land for the hotel.

There are some Federal restrictions on the location of a "main" post office in a town of our size. It can only be so far from the urban core, etc, etc. To this point there havent been any parcels big enough to meet the criteria.

I haven't heard anything on it in a long time but I would guess that Devos is quietly working on this under the radar. I dont' think he would have bought Olds Manor if he didn't have some kind of idea in mind.

Nitro

[terra firma]

I was just out by the airport, and I noticed the Patterson/44th Corridor is still full of empty buildings just sitting there.  Anyone have any stats on the "free space" in Kent County?  Some of those spaces have been sitting for years with no occupants.  Are the owners just losing their shirts with all that open space? 

Just curious, not sure how that all works, just seems 100's of thousands of sq. ft. sitting empty is a bad thing if you paid/pay for the building.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Most of the really significant vacancy now is in big-box industrial. There was very little tenant activity in the past year and a half. Getting better finally...

Smaller stuff has been moving again; it will be a long time before all our current vacancy is absorbed; manufacturing jobs are leaving the state FAST and State government does not seem to be noticing.

Anytime you see an empty building, there is a hurting landlord somplace behind it. Carry costs (debt service, prop taxes, utilites etc) are staggering on the big ones.... as a result rates $ / foot are dropping and tenants are getting smokin' deals.

As I said, it's improving but will just take time. Meanwhile I'm back in the downtown office game again....great acitivity that way....

[PBJ]

Most of the really significant vacancy now is in big-box industrial.    There was very little tenant activity in the past year and a half.  Getting better finally...

Smaller stuff has been moving again; it will be a long time before all our current vacancy is absorbed; manufacturing jobs are leaving the state FAST and State government does not seem to be noticing. 

Anytime you see an empty building, there is a hurting landlord somplace behind it.  Carry costs (debt service, prop taxes, utilites etc) are staggering on the big ones....  as a result rates  $ / foot are dropping and tenants are getting smokin' deals. 

As I said, it's improving but will just take time.  Meanwhile I'm back in the downtown office game again....great acitivity that way....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yeah, I know when I worked over that way a couple years ago RDG had a ton of empty stuff.. Big warehouses, that I still see available for lease/sale. It can't be a good feeling, especially when I see other companies in that area building NEW buildings, when there's a ton of open "older style" offices in the general area. You'd think it'd be cheaper to lease/remodel something sitting there for 2 years that would, as you said, come at a great price per sq/ft.