H
ow can I add more park-
ing spaces? It’s a question I
hear frequently from office
building owners, develop-
ers and property managers.
Office building densities are rapidly
increasing, and this has led to a
desire to add parking spaces, some-
times up to a ratio of six spaces per
1,000 square feet.
Several decades ago, offices were
designed to accommodate densities
of 300 sf per employee, on average.
Now, many owners are interested in
developing or renovating their build-
ings to accommodate more open
floor plates, sometimes referred to
as lightly or fully
demised.
The French word
demise means “to
give away.” In archi-
tecture, the term
is used to describe
boundary lines
such as office walls
and other dividers
within the building.
The theory is that
millennials and
certain industries
such as architec-
ture, design, tech-
nology, web- and application-based
startups, and other “creative profes-
sionals” prefer open and more col-
laborative work environments.
Another factor is that less area is
needed for paper storage. Items such
as resource and law libraries, records
retention, code books, manuals and
plan sets are available in digital for-
mat. As a result, many office build-
ings are accommodating densities of
around 200 to 250 sf per employee,
with some companies even going as
low as 150 sf per employee.
To accommodate this trend, com-
mercial brokers and tenants are ask-
ing for more parking. Owners, whose
buildings previously supplied some-
where in the range of 3½ to four
spaces per 1,000 sf are struggling to
find five to six spaces per 1,000 sf to
attract new tenants and satisfy new
lease commitments.
But is the quest to add parking
spaces always the best approach?
Our recent studies confirm that
the demand for parking at some
office properties is increasing. How-
ever, from a commercial leasing
standpoint, there also is significant
evidence that many employers and
brokers tend to overestimate their
parking needs by around 20 percent
Schnitzer West
After a planning study, the Civica project in Cherry Creek, an office infill project with below-grade parking, determined to adhere to a 1.6 spaces per 1,000 square feet ratio, offer-
ing 215 parking spaces. The developer, Schnitzer West, intends to allocate office building permits at 2.55 per 1,000 sf.
INSIDE
Jeremiah
Simpson
Consultant,
Walker Parking
Consultants,
Denver
