In Focus: Sarasota

Sarasota has been on a growth tear since emerging from the economic recession of the last decade, with more than $1 billion in new commercial and multiresidential projects either delivered or under construction at present.

Although downtown Sarasota and the immediate surrounding county of the same name have experienced significant growth, much of the new development has expanded geographically outward to the master-planned community of Lakewood Ranch and to Benderson Development Co. holdings surrounding the Mall at University Town Center.

Two sectors have propelled growth more than others this economic cycle in Sarasota: Multifamily residential rentals and hospitality projects. In the city of Sarasota alone, more than 1,000 new hotel rooms and more than 1,400 new apartments have been delivered since 2013.

New condominium projects, if they reach fruition, will add another roughly 700 residents to downtown. Corresponding retail space has also grown, especially at University Town Center.

Conversely, there has been a dearth of new office and industrial space in Sarasota and Sarasota County.

The plethora of new residents and visitors has, however, helped lower vacancy rates for existing office, industrial and retail space, and those sectors have performed well overall, according to CoStar Group research in the final quarter of last year, the most current available.

4.9%

Percentage of overall office space vacant as of Dec. 31 in Sarasota. The vacancy rate is down 42% from the start of 2015, which has pushed overall asking rental rates up to $22.72 per square foot, a nearly 22% gain during that same almost four-year period.

7,000

Amount of space, as measured in square feet, of the largest new office building in Sarasota delivered in the past year. The 1659 Second St. project, from developer Biter Enterprises Inc., is part of a larger redevelopment that also will add 90 new multifamily apartments upon completion later this year. The largest new block of office space underway in the city, however, will measure roughly 11,000 square feet and be part of The Kolter Group’s 12-story The Mark mixed-use development downtown. That $125 million project is slated for delivery in the second half of this year.

4

Number of new office buildings under construction at year end in the Sarasota/Bradenton submarket. Combined, the four contain 148,237 square feet and were 77.4% pre-leased prior to the commencement of construction.

82,694

Largest new industrial lease commitment in the Sarasota area in the past year. Outdoor by Design’s deal for the 7839 Fruitville Road building supplanted former tenant Scott Paint, in a transaction negotiated by American Property Group of Sarasota.

2.6%

Percentage of industrial space, in square feet, available in Sarasota and Sarasota County as of Dec. 31, out of a market of 14.2 million square feet. The low vacancy rate has pushed asking rental rates up to $8.10 per square foot.

375,855

Amount of retail space, in square feet, under construction in the Sarasota/Bradenton submarket at the end of 2018. The 14 buildings were 76.2% pre-leased prior to the start of construction and contain an average of 26,847 square feet — more than twice the average amount of space in existing retail buildings.

51,927

Amount of space, in square feet, of the largest new retail project delivered in Sarasota in the past 12 months. The University Station complex, at 5298 University Parkway and developed by SJ Collins Enterprises Inc., features a Whole Foods Market, WaWa convenience store, Zoe’s Kitchen, and others.

4.2%

Amount of available retail space, in square feet, in the Sarasota/Bradenton submarket as of Dec. 31. The rate largely mirrors that of overall retail vacancy in the Tampa/St. Petersburg market as a whole, at 4.4%. That vacancy rate remained steady even as some 486,068 square feet of new space — the second most behind only Pasco County — had been delivered in the previous 12 months. By comparison, the vacancy rate stood at 5.4% at the start of 2015.

$16.49

Asking price per square foot for all retail space in the Sarasota/Bradenton submarket at year end. The average rental rate, by comparison, for retail space in the entire Tampa/St. Petersburg market was $15.80 during the same period. Four years ago, the retail rental rate in the submarket was $14.25 per square foot.

3.6%

Percentage of retail space, in square feet, vacant in Sarasota and surrounding Sarasota County at the end of last year. The relatively low rate could rise somewhat, however, as 204,172 square feet of new space that is under construction comes online.

$19.34

Average cost of retail space, on a per square foot basis, in Sarasota and the surrounding Sarasota County areas at the close of 2018. By comparison, in the Manatee County submarket just to the north of Sarasota, the asking average retail rental rate as of Dec. 31 stood at $14.93 per square foot.

Source: CoStar Group Inc.