Downtown Austin Market News

[KevinFromTexas]

US Office Markets by the number of square footage leased/sold(or vacated in red) during the First 3 quarters of 2012

http://www.us.am.joneslanglasalle.co...tatistics.aspx

Market, Net Absorption(total square feet)
Silicon Valley(San Jose) +2,969,100 sq ft
Houston +2,690,000
Atlanta +2,630,500
Dallas +1,831,700
Seattle +1,352,700
San Francisco +1,246,300
Los Angeles +1,217,000
Portland +1,010,000
Philadelphia +864,900
Austin +836,300
Orange County +760,800
Phoenix +736,400
Detroit +715,000
Indianapolis +629,900
Miami +540,300
Charlotte +518,600
San Diego +509,200
Raleigh/ Durham +396,200
Baltimore +379,300
Denver +377,300
Cincinnati +337,400
Oakland/ East Bay +312,000
Richmond +309,400
Jacksonville +272,300
Sacramento +244,700
Westchester County +206,700
Ft Lauderdale +196,100
Columbus +191,500
Pittsburgh +137,800
St Louis +106,400
West Palm Beach +68,100
Boston +21,200
Hampton Roads -25,400
Tampa -28,600
New York -34,800
Orlando -35,300
Fairfield County -185,000
San Francisco Peninsula -174,700
Cleveland -205,500
New Jersey -214,300
San Antonio -256,300
Minneapolis -454,000
Chicago -559,500
Washington DC -2,899,300

[gmsalpha]

By the way, Austin is the tenth down. Perhaps we can change the color or Austin to make it stand out?

And I find it funny that "New Jersey" made the list. That's quite a big market, being that it's an entire state!!

[Myomi]

Originally Posted by gmsalpha

By the way, Austin is the tenth down. Perhaps we can change the color or Austin to make it stand out?

And I find it funny that "New Jersey" made the list. That's quite a big market, being that it's an entire state!!

New Jersey has an area of 8,721 square miles, 15 percent of which is water (according to Wikipedia).

Greater Houston (Houston-Sugarland-Baytown) has an area of 10,062 square miles, around 11 percent of which is water.

I don't know if that is funny, or just ridiculous.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Houston#Geography

[KevinFromTexas]

Another company moving into downtown.

http://www.statesman.com/news/busine...-downto/nS43t/

Posted: 4:50 p.m. Monday, Nov. 12, 2012
Tech firm Zilliant upgrades to bigger space downtown

By Gary Dinges
American-Statesman Staff

An Austin-based tech company has leased an entire floor in downtown Austin’s Perry Brooks Tower.

Zilliant, which offers business-to-business price optimization software, will take over the 24,000-square-foot sixth floor of the 12-story Perry Brooks Tower at 720 Brazos St. by April of next year, President and CEO Greg Peters said Monday.

“We looked at a number of different spots in different areas of the city,” Peters said. “We really like the space we got.”

[KevinFromTexas]

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/bl....html?page=all

WhaleShark Media signs big lease downtown

Austin Business Journal by Jan Buchholz, Staff Writer
Date: Tuesday, November 20, 2012, 2:23pm CST

Jan Buchholz
Staff Writer- Austin Business Journal

Rumors had WhaleShark Media Inc. moving into the signature space at the Seaholm Power Plant project, but in the end, the online coupon giant decided to stay in the same downtown Austin building where it has been located since 2011 — 301 Congress Ave.

WhaleShark executives signed a lease for 95,000 square feet, according to company spokesman Brian Hoyt. That's 60,000 square feet more than the company currently occupies. Hoyt did not disclose any specific terms of the lease.

Commercial real estate brokers have repeatedly said that there is no significant contiguous space available downtown because of the low vacancy rates, so the WhaleShark deal seems a bit mysterious.

[KevinFromTexas]

This sucks. I don't care how convenient some of those services are, the experience of walking into a music store and thumbing through the music is so much more real. I usually went for movies.

http://www.statesman.com/news/busine...on-nort/nTBxY/

Posted: 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2012
Cheapo Records, a trove of music and movies on North Lamar, to close after 14 years

By Peter Mongillo
American-Statesman Staff

Cheapo Records, which has been in business at 914 N. Lamar Blvd. since 1998, is closing its doors Dec. 23, owner Jason Shields announced Tuesday.
In an email, Shields cited “a lack of brick and mortar music sales and the increasing competition of online music stores.”

In recent years, music consumers increasingly have relied on digital media. In 2011, digital music sales beat physical sales for the first time, accounting for 50.3 percent of purchases, according to Nielsen SoundScan and Billboard. Digital album sales rose another 15 percent in 2012, according to Nielsen.

[migol24]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

This sucks. I don't care how convenient some of those services are, the experience of walking into a music store and thumbing through the music is so much more real. I usually went for movies.

http://www.statesman.com/news/busine...on-nort/nTBxY/

Yeesh that does suck. One of my favorite places in Austin. I bought so many many used CDs from there. Now that this is going, Austin doesn't really have many really cool used record stores for being such a music city. End of an Ear, Antone's on Guadalupe and Waterloo Records are the only others that I'm fairly familiar with.

[KevinFromTexas]

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/ne...w-housing.html

Austin in top 20 for low housing vacancy rate
Austin Business Journal by Sarah Drake, Web Editor
Date: Monday, November 26, 2012, 11:53am CST

Sarah Drake
Web Editor- Austin Business Journal

Austin ranks in the top 20 for lowest housing vacancy rates in the nation, with more than 91 percent of housing units occupied, according to a survey.

The Austin area has an 8.2 percent vacancy rate, ranking the city No. 19. That translates to 59,431 vacant housing units of out of the 723,297 housing units in the area, according to the report, which uses U.S. Census Bureau data from the 2011 American Community Survey.

El Paso ranks No. 6 with a 6.4 percent vacancy rate. Dallas took the No. 30 spot with 9.2 percent, San Antonio ranks No. 43 with 10 percent, and Houston is in 72nd place with 11.8 percent.

[KevinFromTexas]

*Boo*

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/bl....html?page=all

Law firm departs downtown Austin for better suburban deal

Austin Business Journal by Jan Buchholz, Staff Writer
Date: Wednesday, November 28, 2012, 1:20pm CST

Jan Buchholz
Staff Writer- Austin Business Journal

Office space in downtown Austin is tight. Law firms — which for years have leased the lion’s share of downtown real estate — are now being challenged for territorial rights by emerging technology and energy firms.

Not everyone is convinced that downtown is the only place to be. Law firm Bowman and Brooke LLP is vacating its current location at 600 Congress Ave. and heading to more suburban digs southwest of downtown.

Michelle Bailey, Bowman and Brooke’s chief of operations, said it isn’t simply cost considerations that have led the company to Terrace IV at 2901 Via Fortuna near the crossroads of Mopac Expressway and Capital of Texas Highway.

[MichaelB]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

*Boo*

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/bl....html?page=all

bye bye

[LoneStarMike]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

*Boo*

Why Boo? You're seeing the glass half-empty It's not all that bad if you think about it. As the article reported:

finding large blocks of office space is somewhat akin to going on a treasure hunt. As the hunt grows more competitive, rents increase. Some companies may be priced out of the market as a result of supply and demand pressures.

To me, that just says it's time to build more office space - and yeah, I know there are some in the works, but when they're completed, I think they'll fill up quickly. Then it will be time to build more office space - like maybe at 6th & Congress where the T Stacy project fell through.

[austlar1]

What is the status on the two proposed office buildings, the 10 or 12 story job W 5th and the much taller one on 3rd and Colorado? Both were rumored to have start dates in the fall of 2012. No word on either project in a while. Does anybody know any details? I hope they do get built, especially the 3rd and Colorado project.

[Jdawgboy]

Last I heard 3rd and Colorado was to start ground prep in December. We will know if that is the case or not within the next week.

[KevinFromTexas]

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/pr...-not-much.html

Need space in downtown Austin for your company? Good luck in this market
Austin Business Journal by Jan Buchholz, Staff Writer
Date: Friday, November 30, 2012, 5:00am CST - Last Modified: Thursday, November 29, 2012, 10:01pm CST

For many companies, especially those with more than 100 people under one roof, there may as well be a gigantic “no vacancy” sign over downtown Austin.

With a new mix of companies clamoring for space in the Central Business District, vacancy rates have plummeted to about 10.9 percent for Class A office properties, said Kim Gatley, senior vice president and director of research for NAI REOC brokerage in Austin. The squeeze is so tight that some commercial real estate brokers are wondering whether there are enough large blocks of space to accommodate new companies to the market.

[SecretAgentMan]

Originally Posted by Jdawgboy

Last I heard 3rd and Colorado was to start ground prep in December. We will know if that is the case or not within the next week.

Their site plan is still in review.

[Spaceman]

Originally Posted by SecretAgentMan

Their site plan is still in review.

SAM,
you had the same quote on the Manchester post

[SecretAgentMan]

Originally Posted by Spaceman

SAM,
you had the same quote on the Manchester post

That's because they are both still under review, as is Seaholm. No work can begin until a site plan permit is approved and released. In the case of Seaholm, they do have a permit for selective demolition and excavation of the parking structure, so we might see site prep start prior to the main site plan being released.

[KevinFromTexas]

http://www.statesman.com/news/news/a...ce-week/nTPbm/

Posted: 9:00 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 6, 2012
Austin area hotels saw boost during F1 race week

By John Maher
American-Statesman Staff

For area hoteliers, Austin’s inaugural Formula One race was definitely a grand prix.
During the five-day period ending with the race on Sunday, Nov. 18, Austin area hotels took in $32 million — triple what they made during the same stretch the previous year. And that five-day period in 2011 included a University of Texas home football game against Kansas State.

According to an economic forecast prepared earlier this year for the circuit by Don Hoyte, hotels are expected to provide the second-largest amount of race-related tax revenues, only slightly behind shopping and entertainment. According to Hoyte’s analysis — which took into consideration hotels beyond the immediate Austin area — hotels could see an increase of $52 million in revenue over seven days from traffic for the F1 race.

• On the comparable Saturday in November 2011, when UT played Kansas State, 89.9 percent of area hotel rooms were occupied by people paying an average of $111.40 per night. This year on Saturday, Nov. 17, 94.4 percent of the rooms were occupied by people paying $300.44 per night. More rooms were occupied at a higher rate during F1.

• On the comparable Sunday in 2011, 41.1 percent of area hotel rooms were occupied by people paying an average of $86.52 per night. This year on Sunday, Nov. 18, 76 percent of the rooms were occupied by people paying $266.16 per night. Again, more rooms were occupied at a higher rate.

[KevinFromTexas]

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/bl...s-list-of.html

Slideshow: Austonian, Block 21 top ULI's list of winners

Austin Business Journal by Jan Buchholz, Staff Writer
Date: Thursday, December 13, 2012, 9:02am CST - Last Modified: Thursday, December 13, 2012, 10:49am CST

Jan Buchholz
Staff Writer- Austin Business Journal

The Austin chapter of the Urban Land Institute recently handed out its first Development of Distinction Awards.

The awards were given in four categories: New development commercial and mixed-use, new development residential, redevelopment and public impact. The annual awards program is designed to showcase the best practices in land use and hopefully encourage developers to emulate the winning submissions.

[KevinFromTexas]

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/pr...s-revived.html

800 Brazos revived

Posh hotel from ’50s has new life; bye-bye rocky past and bulletproof glass
Austin Business Journal by Jan Buchholz, Staff Writer
Date: Friday, December 14, 2012, 5:00am CST

Jan Buchholz
Staff Writer- Austin Business Journal

An Austin-based commercial real estate investment firm has breathed new life into what once was among downtown’s prominent buildings.

In its heyday, 800 Brazos was the chic Commodore Perry hotel, which catered to the monied set of the 1950s. Over the ensuing years, however, the building’s fortunes and reputation faded.

The past five years have been especially cloudy. One developer’s vision for redeveloping .

-

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/pr...wn-office.html

New York firm buys into downtown office market on Lavaca

Austin Business Journal by Jan Buchholz, Staff Writer
Date: Friday, December 14, 2012, 5:00am CST

Jan Buchholz
Staff Writer- Austin Business Journal

Lavaca Plaza at 504 Lavaca St. has been sold to Brickman, a New York real estate investment company.