A pair of commercial office space reports — the Providence Office Market Survey conducted by Hayes & Sherry and the New England Market Outlook 2001 by CB Richard Ellis New England — suggests office space in the capital city is shrinking.
Hayes & Sherry reports overall availability at 9.8 percent, while CB Richard Ellis has it listed at 11 percent.
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The CB Richard Ellis report also found that the Capital Center District has become a particularly desirable area because of its proximity to Providence Place and other anticipated developments. The vacancy rate of the area was 6 percent for 2000.
That office space in Providence is tight is nothing new, but a trend that has been evident for several years. In fact, the tightening market and overall popularity of the capital city has spurred talk of new office construction – talk that would have been considered folly a decade ago.
If the tight office space market spurs such new construction, particularly Class A space — that’s a great thing for the city. The city is sorely lacking in Class A space, where we continue to hear about companies that are attracted to the city, but turn away because there’s no place for them to go.
For those companies willing to settle for Class B or C space, there is room, and some of this space is an extremely attractive alternative to Boston. Providence is not as congested when compared to Boston, parking availability is quickly improving and rental rates per square foot are more than competitive.
