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— Property Management Quarterly — January 2016
by Michelle Z. Askeland
To many people, managing two
Class A office properties with over
550,000 square feet in the Denver
Tech Center would be a daunting
responsibility. Managing a family of
four children, ranging from five-year-
old twins to a freshman in college,
is another full-time, overwhelming
job. On top of that, throw in a revolv-
ing door of foster puppies and board
member responsibilities for a cor-
porate office association, and you’ve
got a day in the life of Michelle Nien-
kerk.
Nienkerk manages an office prop-
erty at 7979 E. Tufts Ave. in the Den-
ver Tech Center, and another one,
ParkRidge 4, near Lincoln Avenue
and Interstate 25. She works for
Lowe Enterprises Real Estate Group,
which is a partner in the Tufts
Avenue property and manages
ParkRidge 4 on behalf of Principal
Financial Group. This means the
10-year Lowe Enterprises veteran has
two assets, two ownerships and two
different accounting platforms.
When you step into Nienkerk’s
office, you’ll notice stacks of binders
and organized piles of paper, all nec-
essary to keep the inner workings of
both properties operating smoothly.
However, despite the amount of
paperwork, the office remains clean
and uncluttered, which mimics
Nienkerk’s overall approach to man-
agement: organized and efficient.
“I like the busy lifestyle,” she said.
“It makes every day interesting and
different. It is never the same day
as you’ve had before; it just doesn’t
happen.”
With her calm, quiet approach,
Nienkerk is behind the scenes of
every major decision affecting the
two properties. The property off
Lincoln is 100 percent leased, which
meant she had to give up her on-site
office when one of her tenants want-
ed to expand. The property has very
little turnover and is easy to manage,
she said.
The Tufts property, acquired in
2014, is more active. Since acqui-
sition, most of Nienkerk’s time
has been devoted to demolishing,
upgrading and attracting new ten-
ants.
“I knew the game plan for the
building during due diligence,” she
said. “The plan was already set in
place so we were ready to hit the
ground running the moment we
closed, which was a new experience
for me.”
In the past 18 months, Nienkerk
replaced tiles, carpets, doors, panel-
ing, ceilings and more. She oversaw
updates to the bathrooms, elevators
and main entrance and completely
remodeled the lobby. She also rede-
signed the deli and added a ten-
ant lounge and Starbucks kiosk, in
addition to building a fitness center
in order to improve the building’s
amenities. Lowe Enterprises is work-
ing with Xcel Energy on a dual-feed
project that will ensure the building
keeps power even if one power feed
goes out.
“You almost forget all that you did,”
she said as she flipped through pho-
tos of the property before and after
the updates. “We’re always trying to
do things that will make the building
better.”
In 2016, Nienkerk and her team
will create a game room in the ten-
ant lounge area.
She also plans to
continue with cos-
metic updates and
upgrades through-
out the building.
The ParkRidge
property will see
updates as well as
the building strives
for LEED for Exist-
ing Building Gold
or Silver certifica-
tion. The property is
Energy Star rated.
In addition to the
general building
updates, a major
push for the Tufts
property will focus
on leasing. One big
tenants moved out
in 2015, dropping
occupancy to 65
percent. Nienkerk’s
goal is to help the
asset get to 80 per-
cent occupancy,
which hopefully
will include some
large tenants, she
said.
With new tenants comes more
construction projects. But even
before tenants sign their leases,
Nienkerk is working with them. “I’m
involved in the preleasing to help fig-
ure out what makes the deal work,”
she said. “Each step is a group effort
so instead of being thrown in after
the lease is signed, I get to know the
tenant before everything starts.”
This opportunity to establish a
relationship with her tenants early
on is one of her favorite parts of
working for Lowe Enterprises, and
something her tenants notice. For
example, she’s overseeing construc-
tion on a space for a tenant who
she managed at a previous building,
which then followed Nienkerk to the
new property once its old lease was
up.
One reason for this tenant loyalty
is the protection and fairness she
provides the members of her build-
ing. This was on display during a
Profile
The 7979 E. Tufts Ave. lobby before and after renovation
The tenant lounge at 7979 E. Tufts Ave. before and after updates
Michelle Nienkerk with husband, Jayson, and kids, Tyler, 19,
Colton, 16, twins Jacob and Keelie, 5
Before
Before
After
After
