Downtown Office Leases

[Pete]

Thought I would start a new thread to track office leasing activity in the downtown area because I'm starting to see more and more in the business news but also through building permits.

Yesterday I posted about a sizable lease in the Packard Building and today there was a permit to finish out 5,000 square feet at 615 N. Hudson. The building was constructed in 2001 and recently sold to investors in Norman -- has about 30,000 square feet:



And just last week, there was a building permit for 21,000 square feet in the south tower of Leadership Square. I don't know the tenant but the contractor doing the work is based in Cleveland.

[Just the facts]

And just last week, there was a building permit for 21,000 square feet in the south tower of Leadership Square. I don't know the tenant but the contractor doing the work is based in Cleveland.

Exogen?

[metro]

It's about time that building on Hudson leases out, I think it's always been empty

[Pete]

Building permit today for $6.8 million (!) to redo floors 3-7 and part of 9 of the north tower of Leadership Square; 109,000 square feet.

Not sure where all these employees are now, but that's 5+ floors in that building.

[Soho]

That's for Enogex, they are taking the Tronox space and more. I'm on the tenth floor and am listening to what sounds like a very loud Dentist's drill below me.

[Pete]

The building permit specified OG&E (meant to mention that).

[king183]

Here's a story about Flogistix, an oil and gas business, moving from Texas to downtown OKC. They'll be occupying office space in City Place. The reasons given for moving are the workforce and the proximity to customers, which I assume will be other oil and gas companies like Devon, Sandridge, Chesapeake, and Continental.

Flogistix LP, a leading oil and natural gas services provider, announced Monday it has opened its corporate headquarters at City Place, 204 N Robinson Ave.

That office will house up to 20 members of Flogistix's management team, with the remainder of company's 150-plus employees spread across its eight-state service area.



Read more: http://newsok.com/texas-oil-field-se...#ixzz1eSNpl0Bj

Any other businesses making their way downtown that we know of?

[Just the facts]

Any other businesses making their way downtown that we know of?

From the FNC thread:

http://noodlestream.com/press/noodle...-oklahoma-city

Oklahoma City, OK November 03, 2011 - noodleStream.com®, the makers of SafetySkills™, is a premier online safety training solution providing EHS training to individuals and all sized companies. noodleStream.com® is excited to announce their relocation to the historic First National Center in downtown Oklahoma City after four years in north Oklahoma City. This new location improves accessibility for employees, current customers and prospective clients while also providing needed growth space. The new office has capacity to house the continuing technology improvements for SafetySkills™ and additional space necessary for more efficient client and product development activities.

noodleStream.com® is also looking to continue improving their sustainable business practices through this new location. The move results in a more central location to many employees, alternative forms of transportation, and is located in an area within walking distance of restaurants, doctors’ offices, dentists, convenience stores, barber shops and banks. Internally noodleStream.com®has done away with paper plates and plastic ware, and added multiple recycle bins around the new office. The benefits of this location brought together all of the requirements in looking for a new office – a central location to employees and clients, the space for growth and an improved support system for the company’s sustainability efforts.

J. Boyd Nolan, Chief Operating Officer of noodleStream.com® commented on the new location, “Downtown Oklahoma City is a vibrant and growing business environment that provides every resource that noodleStream.com® needs. The advantages in location and services to both our clients and our employees make it the ideal new home. We couldn’t be happier to be in this new location.”

About SafetySkills™ and noodleStream.com®
noodleStream.com® is a USA-based company focusing on providing world-class, technology-based solutions to global compliance training challenges. SafetySkills™, a product of noodleStream.com, is an innovative, interactive online safety training and Learning Management System that provides over 200 OSHA, EPA and DOT compliant courses. noodleStream.com® develops and markets its own products, and provides custom programming, subject matter expertise, ISD and content development services for public and private-sector clients.

[Bellaboo]

If you can get 8 or so of these small business to relocate downtown per year from where ever, it wouldn't take long for the empty blocks of space that Devon will leave to be absorbed quickly. Along with companies like CR, we could see growth happen sooner rather than later.

[BoulderSooner]

the devon empty space is close to gone already

[Bellaboo]

the devon empty space is close to gone already

I either read a story or heard an interview by Tom Ward about 6 months ago, speaking about oil and gas production from the Mississippi Sandstone formation accross Northern Oklahoma, that it would bring other O&G firms to OKC......maybe this is the beginning of that prediction..?

[OKCMallen]

I either read a story or heard an interview by Tom Ward about 6 months ago, speaking about oil and gas production from the Mississippi Sandstone formation accross Northern Oklahoma, that it would bring other O&G firms to OKC......maybe this is the beginning of that prediction..?

For the most part, there's no need for a company to move completely in order to develop that play. But hey, let's hope!

[Dustin]

"Oklahoma City - The soon-to-be energy capital of the world"

I hope all of these energy companies play nice with each other being in such a close proximity! lol

[Thundercitizen]

"...and keep your enemies closer."

[Just the facts]

"...and keep your enemies closer."

You achieve more by working together and you get better through competition. Bricktown owners should learn that lesson.

[Urbanized]

You achieve more by working together and you get better through competition. Bricktown owners should learn that lesson.

Why does this thread require a swipe at Bricktown? How is it relevant? I guess too many minutes had passed since someone had dogged Bricktown out? Seems like every thread on here does, eventually.

By "Bricktown owners" do you mean EVERY Bricktown owner? Because that's how it reads. I guess that includes the University of Central Oklahoma? The Chickasaw Nation? The Pitman group that developed a parking garage, the Hampton Inn, and which will be breaking ground soon on two more multi-story hotels? Jim Tolbert, who has wonderfully-renovated buildings in the heart of the district jam-packed with law offices, architectural firms and the like? Harding and Shelton, who have spent a ton of money doing a sensitive renovation of their building (with more phases to come)? The family of Jim Brewer, who seem to be charting a course very different than the one Jim followed, with an eye to development rather than speculation?

I understand that there are plentiful frustrating aspects to Bricktown. Believe me, I see things EVERY DAY, IN PERSON, that frustrate me and affect my businesses directly.

But despite some of those frustrations and setbacks, Bricktown has also returned hundreds of millions of dollars in private investment, which RARELY is acknowledged by the people here and elsewhere who instead choose to constantly carp. Just as there are good owners and bad owners here, there are good owners and bad owners in EVERY district in downtown. I could name them, but I won't, because I don't think it is productive nor will it help the development of those districts. As a downtown resident, business owner and worker, I want ALL of the districts to succeed.

When people cast these blanket aspersions toward Bricktown on this board, or in private conversations with colleagues, friends or family, it damages the district just as surely as some of the poor decisions that have been made in the district over the years.

The fact of the matter is that there was no Oklahoma City template for downtown revitalization when Bricktown started developing. The economics of it were so shaky that you could not attract traditional, successful developers, as the suburbs remained much more of a sure thing for many, many years. There was no other development going on, and this provided both a grand stage and a giant microscope for the district. Just like the successes, the mistakes that were made here were very public. They also provided a great example for other districts to learn from; both things to do and things NOT to do. Bricktown itself didn't have the advantage of learning from other revitalizing downtown OKC districts; they didn't exist.

Nearly every single downtown district since has (mistakenly, IMO) started very early on by trying to promote itself as some sort of "anti-Bricktown," until they figured out one by one that Bricktown's success is actually IMPORTANT to their own, just like their success helps Bricktown. They also discovered that they didn't have to "take away" business from Bricktown to be successful themselves; that instead of slicing up a pie into smaller pieces that we all are instead baking a bigger and more diverse pie.

Bricktown's success is important to all of Oklahoma City. We've invested too much in downtown to think otherwise. And yes, despite the fact that Bricktown was an obvious beneficiary of MAPS, we have invested and will invest far more public money outside of the district's boundaries than inside. Every time someone casually dogs all of Bricktown, they hurt it. It's fair to criticize individual developments, designs, even owners. But blanket statements about " Bricktown owners" are tired and inaccurate.

That's my two cents. Sorry for the rant.

And Pete, I know it is off-topic, but so was the post that precipitated it. Feel free to move it to "Bricktown change it attitude?" or wherever appropriate if you must. I just needed to get that off of my chest. I won't continue to post off-topic in this thread.

[metro]

"Oklahoma City - The soon-to-be energy capital of the world"

I hope all of these energy companies play nice with each other being in such a close proximity! lol

I wish, but not even close.

[Spartan]

I guess too many minutes had passed since someone had dogged Bricktown out? Seems like every thread on here does, eventually.

Well, one thing we can all agree on it seems that is why this is. There are a lot of reasons why Bricktown draws people's ire lately.

[adaniel]

Does anyone know where QuiBids is located? What is the chance that they move downtown, if they are not there already?

[lasomeday]

Does anyone know where QuiBids is located? What is the chance that they move downtown, if they are not there already?

I am pretty sure they are in the Valiance Tower up on NW Expressway.

[Just the facts]

Why does this thread require a swipe at Bricktown? How is it relevant? I guess too many minutes had passed since someone had dogged Bricktown out? Seems like every thread on here does, eventually.

My apologies. I retract the second sentence of my comment.

[Pete]

Staplegun (advertising/marketing/PR) has moved into the 20th floor of City Place and is spending $200K to remodel about 5,000 square feet.

They had previously been at 6525 N. Classen, a building owned by Chesapeake.

[HOT ROD]

very nice. Good to see older buildings get some occupancy.

I wonder if that might be an interesting trend -> former suburban businesses, building bought by Chesapeake, so the business moves downtown to older building (to start); thereby improving the older space (and occupying it at least until they can afford Class A).

I pray they can take on more floors as they grow.

[Pete]

Chesapeake has bought six large suburban buildings in the last year and they were all relatively full. This is in addition to the dozens of smaller buildings they have been acquiring over the last several years.

They are gradually pushing the existing tenants out of those buildings so they can move their own employees in. As I mentioned on the CHK thread, the Chamber now lists them as having 4,000 OKC employees. Devon only has 2,500 by way of comparison.

With those six acquisitions in less than 12 months, CHK has taken 850,000 square feet off the market and all those existing tenants have to go somewhere.

[Skyline]

CHK could very well be the future developers of the "new Mystery Tower" in downtown Okc. Why not? it makes financial sense for them too.