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— Office Properties Quarterly — March 2016
T
he many cranes scattered
across Denver’s skyline give
visual evidence to the growth
in the downtown real estate
market. Denver is an attrac-
tive city for businesses to locate
(and relocate), and developers are
building space to accommodate the
demand. Certainly, the revitalization
of Union Station is a hub for much of
the new buildings and renovation of
older buildings. And the downtown
areas of River North, Lower High-
lands and Lower Downtown are the
focus areas for much of this growth.
Technology companies, a growing
sector of Colorado’s economy, have
large numbers of young, knowledge-
able workers. The millennial genera-
tion (also known as Generation Y),
with birth years ranging from the
early 1980s to the early 2000s, are
the lifeblood of these tech compa-
nies. This workforce trend will only
increase; it is estimated that by 2020,
86 million millennials will be in the
national workforce, representing 40
percent of the total workforce popu-
lation.
The explosion of the millennial
workforce has fueled the boom in
companies looking for urban busi-
ness locations. Millennials want to
work where they live, and with so
many in this group choosing to live
in downtown housing, it follows that
they want to work downtown as
well.
The type of spaces that appeal to
this young workforce has significant
impact on real estate professionals
and developers, as well as on the
professionals who design the space.
The trend of revitalizing old loft
spaces started years ago and shows
no sign of slowing
down. Millennials
want funky. “Brick
and timber” spaces
are commanding
premium lease
rates, but in the
race to attract and
retain the best tal-
ent entering the
workforce, many
companies are bit-
ing the premium-
rate bullet.
When weighing
the higher rent in
areas of LoDo, some companies are
looking for alternatives, while other
are looking to take newer build-
ing spaces and give them a rawer,
“funkified” look and feel. Design pro-
fessionals are challenged to find dif-
ferent approaches to create spaces
that embrace this feel. Open ceilings,
stained concrete floors, coffee bars
and bike racks are replacing more
traditional interior looks.
Amenities for millennials do not
necessarily mean what they did only
a few years ago. Amenities in the
past were focused largely on nice-
ties contained in the building itself.
While these amenities are still valu-
able, the urban millennial workforce
considers surrounding amenities
as much as those inside their own
building. Gyms, coffee houses, res-
taurants and other gathering places
that are close to where Gen Y’ers
work often are more important than
those inside their building. “Loca-
tion, location, location” certainly is a
key mantra for companies looking to
attract the best young talent.
Interior spaces for companies that
value collaborative work look dif-
ferent from the older, traditional
private offices, cubicles and confer-
ence room model. Individual space
is shrinking in favor of communal
workspaces that foster casual inter-
action. Progressive companies are
looking for spaces to be utilitarian
and versatile in function. Formal
conference rooms are giving way to
spaces that encourage smaller, infor-
mal, serendipitous meetings where
ideas can be shared without dedi-
cating a room to a meeting. Often
employers are finding that fewer
walls and more open space is what
millennials want, because the envi-
ronment supports a collaborative
way of working. The emphasis is less
on “I” and more on “we,” and spaces
must reflect this paradigm shift.
Where and how tenant improve-
ment dollars are spent to support a
millennial-friendly workspace has
shifted. The younger workforce puts
less value on a beautiful space and
more on an urban space reflective
of what they value and what inter-
ests them. Millennials represent the
new generation of workers who will
have profound impact on the futures
of companies; where and how they
want to work will continue to shape
the landscape of Denver’s downtown
market.
All this buzz about the millennials
begs the question of what happens
once this generation matures and
ages into their 30s and 40s? Genera-
tion Z is right behind them!
s
Jon Rakes
Director, business
development,
Environments
Denver
Design
Interior spaces for companies that value collaborative work include smaller individual
space in favor of communal workspaces that foster casual interaction
