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Page 2 — Office Properties Quarterly — March 2017
CONTENTS Letter from the Editor
A s we wrap up the first quarter,
the headlines seem favorable
across the state.While there
are always areas to watch,
many seem optimistic and
confident that the demand for office
will keep up with, or possibly surpass,
supply. As 2017 finds its rhythm, I’m
excited to watch a few things play out.
I’m hearing more frequently mur-
murings of an open-office backlash.
While any knowl-
edgeable designer
will stress the
importance of a bal-
anced office – one
that appreciates
quiet areas as well
as collaborative
spaces – I’ve read
about companies
that converted to
an open plan only to realize their
atmosphere wasn’t enhanced. I’ll be
interested to see how this feedback
is digested.Will we see new hybrid
approaches or will we see more cau-
tion before companies jump on the
open-office bandwagon?
While I agree that the level of noise
and distractions can affect productiv-
ity, there are some elements of this
design mind-set that I hope stick
around. Specifically, I appreciate the
focus on the workers’ well-being.
On Page 20, readers will learn about
how occupant-first design is mani-
festing itself in office projects across
the state and, on Page 22, read about
how FirstBank used similar ideas to
embrace its employees’ needs when
designing its new headquarters. Both
share the common theme of embrac-
ing the workers’ well-being – a trend
many are getting onboard with.
One more interesting trend I think
we’ll see more of this year is the con-
cept of smart-city developments. Page
19 highlights the Panasonic Enterprise
Solutions Company (PESCO) facility,
which is the first construction project
built at Peña Station NEXT. The bene-
fits of smart cities will impact all parts
of life, but the impacts on office and
multifamily most excite me.
However, as technology becomes an
even more prevalent influencer in our
lives, attention must be paid to pro-
tecting that information.While work-
ing on the cover story, I focused on
Colorado Springs. However, growth in
the cybersecurity industry will reach
across the whole state.
As a leader in technology, I antici-
pate Denver will see many of its com-
panies expand to cyber. In general,
growth in the IT software cluster was
Denver’s fastest-growing industry,
nearly doubling last year, according
to a Jan. 26 report fromMetro Denver
EDC. This employment growth was
largely from company relocations,
expansions and significant venture
capital activity. Today, the Denver
metro region employs 54,580 work-
ers at 5,180 companies and has the
eighth-highest employment concen-
tration out of the 50 largest metropoli-
tan areas, the report said.
Please let me know what topics
you’ll be watching within the office
industry this year. And, as always,
thanks for reading.
Michelle Z. Askeland
303-623-1148, Ext.104
96K SQUARE FEET OF CONTIGUOUS SPACE NOW AVAILABLE
Jamie Roupp | 303.217.7947 |
Michael Crane | 303.260.6533 |
THE FROM OF
/// Actual photography taken from Republic Plaza.