Here's an interesting story about some FiDi buildings trying to mimic the feel of your typical open, raw SOMA space to capitalize on the high demand in SOMA. Perhaps the respective owners of 535 and 350 Mission (and other proposals in the area) can take advantage of this limited vacancy and sign some tenants that might otherwise be looking for space a little further south.
Quote:
Financial District losing to SoMa as destination
By: Sarah Gantz | 01/22/12 4:00 AM
SF Examiner Staff
As surging demand from technology companies propels rents skyward and vacancy rates lower in the South of Market Area, the neighborhood is reaching its limits and prospective tenants are looking to the once-uncool Financial District.
And Financial District property owners — who suddenly can’t attract rental rates as high as those in SoMa — have taken note of the type of office space popular among tech firms.
So they are ripping out their carpets, ceiling tiles, cubicles and private offices and replacing them with sealed concrete floors, high ceilings with exposed air ducts and lots of open space.
“A lot of these new workers don’t want to go into an office their dad used to work in — they want a cool space,” said Charlie Withers, vice president of The CAC Group, a brokerage firm that studies commercial real estate trends.
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Read more at the
San Francisco Examiner
BTW, I'm so not like the cool workers mentioned here. My favorite part of working in the Financial District is that the environment is just like my father's and grandfather's generations worked in. I'm kind of old fashioned that way.