Kip Spencer, SECO Development
Developers are doing everything they can to make their projects attractive to corporations and their brokers as competition in Seattle continues to increase for high-growth tech tenants. And they’re doing it with good reason: Seattle was recently ranked the No. 1 city in the country for technology jobs. Seattle’s tech industry has grown by 12 percent over the past two years, according to Forbes, outpacing Silicon Valley, Boston and other tech markets. Experts point to a diverse local economy – Microsoft, Amazon and Boeing – and more-affordable housing that, together, enabled Seattle to fare better than other technology hubs.
With tech business booming, Seattle’s real estate market is simply trying to keep up. Projects are starting every week, it seems, by developers looking to capture the unprecedented supply of tech businesses. Some are trying to attract anchor tenants with equity, naming rights or aggressive TI allowances. No matter the approach, smart owners realize their buildings must be created in a way that enables tenants to gain a competitive advantage in attracting top industry talent.
Surveys show culture is by far the biggest draw when it comes to recruiting and retaining tech workers. How a company’s owners and employees think, feel and act by far outweighs compensation for today’s savvy tech worker. The buildings they occupy are also critical in determining how that corporate culture is able to live, breathe and improve over time. In fact, owners trying to attract high-profile tenants should reserve some 12 percent of their portfolio space to culture-boosting amenities, according to a recent Colliers International report.
Owners are increasingly working with their architects to create amenities-rich corporate campuses – urban and suburban – dedicated to facilitating authentic and dynamic workplace cultures for tenants. This means locating projects in neighborhoods that foster active, balanced lifestyles – something Gen-Xers vigorously embrace – with a range of goods and services on or near campuses.
The developers at Southport Waterfront Campus in Renton, where three, nine-story, Class A tech-office buildings are being created, apply a “live, work, play and stay” sensibility to its campus. They’re incorporating flexible workspace, apartments, on-site retail, a hotel and recreational assets to encourage teamwork and collaboration. Southport also includes outdoor conference rooms with views of Lake Washington and direct access to a 57-acre waterfront park with trails and open space that promote innovation and discovery. The project is also walking distance to numerous shops and restaurants.
Another example of intentional amenity build-outs is Bellefield Office Park in Bellevue. The owners are embracing the project’s unique location next to a wetland with a dedicated trail system and signage that educates tenants on the variety of flora and fauna in the area.
Not surprisingly, connectivity is important to today’s top tech tenants. After all, it’s central to their culture. Employees want 100 GB data speeds and next-generation network infrastructure to accommodate burst speeds and heavy data transfer. Tenants want to stay connected – whether in conference or experiencing nature just outside the front doors of their office.
Developers in the Seattle area will continue to push the envelope when creating spaces that engender a high level of collaboration and, more broadly, meet their tech tenants’ unique cultural requirements.
By Kip Spencer, Director of Leasing and Marketing, SECO Development. This article originally appeared in the November 2015 issue of Western Real Estate Business magazine.