There has been widespread speculation that corporations may migrate away from the density of CBDs, to the car-centric safety of the suburbs or to the governability of single-story assets. In the end, it’s highly unlikely that the Loop or other city centers will hollow out with a mass exodus, but there is something to be said for variety.
Some office tenants will remain in multi-story high-rises. Some may in fact spread out or relocate to the suburbs. Others may seek out something in between.
That’s one demand driver that The Telos Group is banking on for their most recent assignment, 1155 W. Futon. The four-story, 100,000-square-foot building is in the city’s hottest neighborhood, Fulton Market, but the building characteristics are what may make it truly attractive in the coming months.
“We’ve got an absolutely gorgeous building that is historic in its look, but it’s been fully restored on the inside. And it’s in an incredible location,” said Jack O’Brien, a principal with Telos. “That in itself is a huge draw, but it happens to fit the challenges of today with COVID.”
O’Brien, along with Telos leasing associates J.D. Parcheta and Colton Riemenschneider, is marketing the property for a joint venture between Barnett Capital, Ltd. and Domus Special Situations Group, who acquired the building last year.
“I personally think that, sooner rather than later, we will be back to using office space quite possibly as densely as we did before,” said O’Brien. “But smaller buildings do address some COVID issues that employers are dealing with. 1155 Fulton is bite sized for one or possibly two employers to come in and take the entire building.”
The property has two entrances off of Fulton that a single occupier can use to immediately enter their own space. Additionally, the building can be demised so that two tenants can coexist without comingling, each with their own independent access to and from the building.
The JV recently completed a repositioning of the property, designed by Space Architects + Planners. Many of the building improvements were meant to entice tenants to a loft space in the hip neighborhood. But as companies place a greater stress on the health and wellness of their employees, those improvements are looming large.
Stairwells intentionally widened beyond fire-code requirements might not normally be near the top of a sell sheet, but during a time when individuals would rather avoid crowded elevators, they are an expedient way to safely move about. In a four-story building, opting for the stairs over the elevator is a viable option.
The wider stairwells also improve air circulation, as do the operable windows—a luxury in Class A office space. Employees can get even more air on the wraparound rooftop terrace that surrounds a full-floor glass penthouse that was added as part of the building’s repositioning.
In a single-occupant building, tenants can control aspects ranging from janitorial staff to security to access points and more. 1155 W. Fulton is equipped with a new HVAC system that is designed to be controlled on each floor. If the building should end up with two tenants, they will each be able to independently condition their space.
Co-working firm WeWork had leased the majority of the building; however, an internal restructuring has led the struggling company to pull out of some leases, including at 1155 W. Fulton. They never got far enough along to begin tenant improvement at the property, leaving a blank slate for a future occupier or occupiers.
“Culture and brand are so important for companies and it’s hard to create or maintain that from a virtual perspective,” O’Brien said. “I do think that will be part of the push getting people back together in buildings, whether it’s in a high-rise or a single-tenant property.”
