- October 13, 2024
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Downtown Sarasota commercial real estate, at least for some local brokers, remains a beacon in what's a larger morass of inactivity in the region.
The downtown office space vacancy rate, 13% in the second quarter, according to local economic development data, approaches the 10% vacancy figure many brokers consider normal for any economy.
And one recent downtown Sarasota success story can be traced back to a classic business maxim: Spend money to make money.
That's what New York City-based iStar Financial did with the M&I Bank Building on Pineapple Avenue, a few blocks south of Main Street. The firm took ownership of the 128,389-square-foot building in September 2008, after the previous owner defaulted on a $40 million loan connected to the property. (See Business Review, May 13.)
iStar has since spent more than $1.4 million on a renovation project, says Kim Rogers, an associate with CBRE Group, the building's property manager and leasing agent. The overhaul covers the interior and exterior, and ranges from new carpets to replaced elevator cabs to improved landscaping. The 11-story building “hadn't been maintained,” Rogers tells Coffee Talk. “This was something that was necessary.”
Plus, the renovations drew the interest of Kirk-Pinkerton, a law firm with more than 30 employees in downtown Sarasota, in an office on Central Avenue. Kirk-Pinkerton, which sought new space for a few months, recently signed a lease for the entire sixth floor of the M&I Bank Building, 10,104 square feet. “They are pumping a lot of money into it,” says Kirk-Pinkerton attorney Tim Shaw. “We think this move will be very good for the firm.”
Kirk-Pinkerton is the first new tenant to sign a lease in the building since the initial phase of renovations was completed earlier this year. The building, adds Rogers, is now 76% occupied.
“Even though we spent a lot of money on the building, we still have a great value,” says Rogers. “We think it made sense for Kirk-Pinkerton, and we think it will make sense for additional tenants.”
