Richmond: Economy/Business/Real Estate

[wrldcoupe4]

You never know we saw something  super preliminary.

[KJHburg]

well what did you see for a 2nd Costar building?  5-10 stories?  and maybe they want to move completely out of DC.  

[eandslee]

44 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

well what did you see for a 2nd Costar building?  5-10 stories?  and maybe they want to move completely out of DC.  

See the CoStar thread for the preliminary rendering we saw.  I tried to paste it here, but didn’t know how. 

Edited April 28, 2021 by eandslee

[whw53]

I thought the latest rendering we saw from Hike the full height wasnt pictured and left us guessing but based on that it still exceeded our expectations.

Sent from my SM-A600A using Tapatalk

[eandslee]

Okay, I admit now that we didn’t know for sure how tall CoStar would build, but I was thinking (and I think others on this forum were too) that since CoStar bought the building they’re currently in, that there would be no way they’d build Virginia’s tallest right next to it.  In fact, in my mind, I was thinking that maybe they build as tall as 15 stories...if we were lucky. 
 

Now, KJHburg just threw a wrench into what we thought.  If this rumor is true, we sorely underestimate CoStar and I will be so elated that I think I’ll...cry?  Well, until someone else builds taller somewhere in Tyson’s Corner in NOVA (I think there are some serious plans to build super tall there - over 600').  Currently,  Capital One’s HQ is 480’, Westin VB stands at 508’, and the James Monroe tower stands at 449’.  A plus 500’ tower is what Richmond NEEDS!

**Oh, just a fun fact here - the Washington Monument stands at 500’ tall, which is taller than any tower in Richmond!    Let THAT sink in.

Edited April 28, 2021 by eandslee

[wrldcoupe4]

It’s possible. I wish we knew. CoStar views themselves as very aspirational and dominating their industry space, so they could push height for some bragging rights. Best odds of any.

[eandslee]

For some reason, I keep thinking that in order to go that tall, the building would have to be either pretty slim OR it would include some mixed use.  I'd LOVE to see a mixed-use development...say a hotel, some residences, and then some retail on the lower level; however, this location seems too isolated to be able to sustain retail (at least, that's what it seems like to me...unless it's a sandwich shop or something similar).  Maybe I'm just way off here, but perhaps CoStar really plans to put all of its "eggs" in the Richmond "basket" and, not only does the company plan grow super big, but also may plan to move its HQ here too as KJHburg alludes.  It's all very interesting and fun to speculate about.  Also, good news for great heights is that it will take a lot of time for a project like this to plan.  I read somewhere a few months ago that CoStar said that it will be the end of the year before they have a design finalized, which tells me that they are not just planning to plop down a run-of-the-mill tower there.

Edited April 28, 2021 by eandslee

[eandslee]

@KJHburg - how reliable is your source?  Is this person a part of the building/design process for CoStar?

 

[flaneur]

I care less about height here than real, connected urban fabric so this area feels less like an isolated suburban office park, which it does now. Height at that low elevation wouldn't add much either. I think they could add some commercial space fronting the canal to activate the space and draw activity beyond the work day. Right now any life beyond walkers/joggers is so sporadic from 14th St. to Tredegar. 

[Wahoo 07]

11 minutes ago, flaneur said:

I care less about height here than real, connected urban fabric so this area feels less like an isolated suburban office park, which it does now. Height at that low elevation wouldn't add much either. I think they could add some commercial space fronting the canal to activate the space and draw activity beyond the work day. Right now any life beyond walkers/joggers is so sporadic from 14th St. to Tredegar. 

I'm hoping for both.  To your point about commercial space -- it would be a great place for a (or several) cafe, restaurant, or bar, especially with outdoor seating.

[DowntownCoruscant]

I’m mostly a lurker and the opposite of connected, and I DO want RVA to reclaim tallest in the Commonwealth status, but the rule of thumb is to take what is hoped and/or rumored in this forum and then chop off 20 percent.

[DalWill]

On 4/28/2021 at 2:43 PM, flaneur said:

I care less about height here than real, connected urban fabric so this area feels less like an isolated suburban office park, which it does now. Height at that low elevation wouldn't add much either. I think they could add some commercial space fronting the canal to activate the space and draw activity beyond the work day. Right now any life beyond walkers/joggers is so sporadic from 14th St. to Tredegar. 

This is would be great! Reignite interest in the canal and converting it into a tourist destination.

[eandslee]

13 minutes ago, DalWill said:

This is would be great! Reignite interest in the canal and converting it into a tourist destination.

I always thought there was a grand plan to extend the canal all the way to Maymont, but there has been no movement on that.  I think extending it to Maymont would be so cool; however, I'm not sure how the railroad tracks next to it would make it attractive with trains going through there all the time.  If it could be a quiet, serene float on a canal boat up to Maymont, I think that would be a nice attraction for the city.

[Icetera]

31 minutes ago, eandslee said:

I always thought there was a grand plan to extend the canal all the way to Maymont, but there has been no movement on that.  I think extending it to Maymont would be so cool; however, I'm not sure how the railroad tracks next to it would make it attractive with trains going through there all the time.  If it could be a quiet, serene float on a canal boat up to Maymont, I think that would be a nice attraction for the city.

Unfortunately, the section by Tredegar was filled in. 

[eandslee]

1 minute ago, Icetera said:

Unfortunately, the section by Tredegar was filled in. 

Yeah, I couldn't remember whether that section was to be part of the extension or not.  If so (like you are saying), it's probably a plan that has, long since, died.

[eandslee]

Been saying this for many years - Richmond is an excellent city to live, work, and for companies to move their businesses here.  The problem is that no one knows about it. This article from the RTD explains how GRP is getting at the problem and will hopefully change this and turn this ship around.  Richmond should be one of the first places business execs should think of when considering moving their business...we’ve got to somehow get on their radar...and not just in the radar, but be at the top of the list!  Check out this excerpt from the RTD:

Our region is hot, hot, hot right now. In fact, LinkedIn’s Workforce Confidence Index just listed Greater Richmond as the second most optimistic region in the U.S. based on economic factors. And this is just two months after LinkedIn said the region was No. 3 in the U.S. in attracting the most residents in the midst of the pandemic.

Now just imagine how much more successful we can be in bringing even more jobs and investment to the region if we all work in a more concentrated and conscious effort to spread the word about how great our home is for business.

When you live here, you know how wonderful Richmond can be. As the lead regional economic development organization for the city of Richmond and the counties of Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico, the Greater Richmond Partnership (GRP) makes sure our clients know all of the reasons they should want to locate here as well.

But what we’ve found is that most corporate executives in our targeted industries across the U.S. don’t know a thing about our region before we begin working with them. And it’s our job to change that reality.

Over the past three years, GRP has conducted third-party qualitative and quantitative research to gauge corporate executives’ perceptions, as well as those of site location professionals who advise executives in nearly half of all economic development projects. What we’ve discovered is that Greater Richmond has not been on their radar — at all.

On a scale of 1 to 10 on how likely they were to consider the Richmond region, executives rank our area at a 4.5. Corporate executives are 33% more likely to consider Raleigh, N.C., than Richmond and site consultants are nearly 20% more likely to consider Charlotte, N.C., than Richmond...

...The solution is simple. We need to create a coordinated marketing campaign targeting out-of-market executives within our targeted industries to get them to consider our region more often. And the process already is underway.

GRP has been working with our member localities, ChamberRVA, Richmond Region Tourism, Venture Richmond and many private-sector businesses to formulate a plan of action for moving forward. We’re positive that with the momentum underway and by working together, we can solve this challenge and make our region top of mind for those who wish to bring jobs and investment to the region.

https://richmond.com/opinion/columnists/jennifer-wakefield-column-economic-momentum-is-strong-but-lack-of-external-perception-could-hurt-us/article_76b7fef3-5204-5ed0-8c55-ad15c1869707.html?utm_campaign=GRP News&utm_content=165998632&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&hss_channel=fbp-350808887428

 

Edited May 10, 2021 by eandslee

[I miss RVA]

As far back as the early/mid 80s when I was in undergrad, my urban planning professors frequently discussed the need for marketing to essentially "sell" Richmond as a progressive, pro-business destination city. While Richmond has long put a lot of elbow grease in pushing tourism (and there's a lot to see and do, no question), it's lamentable that the city or the business community has not pushed harder to market the metro RVA market as a good place to do business. Obviously that's been changing, especially over the last 10 years - but Jennifer Wakefield is spot on. i'm excited to see the Greater Richmond Partnership joining with other regional organization to try to put together a strong, coordinated effort to market Richmond. I'd like to see us leapfrog Raleigh. It's disheartening right now to see that executives are currently 33% more likely to choose Raleigh over RVA. Ditto the 20% greater inclination to go to Charlotte (although that's a little more understandable). It's all about competition - and Richmond seriously needs to step up its game in this competition. My professors said such more than 35 years ago - it's all about marketing. If Richmond is going to grow - and grow aggressively - it cannot rely on organic growth and tourism. Aggressive and forward-thinking marketing is the key to pushing Richmond much farther forward to become the city we all know and hope she can be.

[I miss RVA]

Richmond listed as 14th nationally for being among the hottest housing markets in the country. List of 20 metro areas compiled by Credible, using data from Zillow. Not sure of their criteria for this survey - but it's really great to see Richmond in such a lofty position of markets where housing is selling like hotcakes!  And ... we came in ahead of Charlotte! (# 15).

Best line: "Listed houses are moving so fast in Richmond that one local realtor quoted in the media compared the market to a grocery delivery truck selling food in the parking lot and not even getting its produce inside to store shelves." (this was quoting a March 22, 2021 article in Richmond BizSense - link below)

From Richmond.com via RVA/Reddit:

https://richmond.com/business/investment/personal-finance/metros-where-homes-are-selling-the-fastest/collection_180daa37-a07d-50dd-a01f-450788bc874a.html#8

https://richmondbizsense.com/2021/03/22/homes-for-sale-in-richmond-are-hard-to-find-because-theyre-selling-faster/#

Edited May 13, 2021 by I miss RVA

[I miss RVA]

Right on the heels of the report showing Richmond ranked 14th nationally as one of the hottest housing markets in the country comes this report of how exceptionally strong RVA's rental market is currently. Even with all the projects built and/or being built, demand is still outpacing supply. This is fantastic news - particularly for the city. If this trend continues unabated year after year well into the future - we will see Richmond continue to experience almost unprecedented population growth - and perhaps a city population of 340,000 -- or more -- by 2037 is not only not out of reach but quite achievable. Very exciting all the way around.

From the Richmond Times-Dispatch:

https://richmond.com/business/even-after-a-record-number-of-new-apartments-were-added-last-year-the-richmond-region/article_10c84015-a9c1-55df-91f0-56f26c719d37.html

[I miss RVA]

More ramifications from the Sun Trust merger with BB&T - entire Henrico workforce will be transitioning workers to downtown & Semmes Avenue locations. From Richmond BizSense:

https://richmondbizsense.com/2021/06/02/suntrust-transitioning-by-vacating-big-swath-of-innsbrook-area-office-space/

[Icetera]

This year's Fortune 1000 list is out.  The Richmond metro has 7 companies in the Fortune 500 and an additional 5 in the Fortune 1000:

https://www.virginiabusiness.com/article/39-virginia-companies-make-2021-fortune-1000-list/?oly_enc_id=1350E2960023J0V

[eandslee]

5 hours ago, Icetera said:

This year's Fortune 1000 list is out.  The Richmond metro has 7 companies in the Fortune 500 and an additional 5 in the Fortune 1000:

https://www.virginiabusiness.com/article/39-virginia-companies-make-2021-fortune-1000-list/?oly_enc_id=1350E2960023J0V

I can’t remember...is this an increase, decrease, or are we still the same from last year?  12 Fortune 1000 companies is pretty darn good for Richmond!  
 

I wonder where CoStar lands on this list (obviously, not in the top 1000). 

[Icetera]

52 minutes ago, eandslee said:

I can’t remember...is this an increase, decrease, or are we still the same from last year?  12 Fortune 1000 companies is pretty darn good for Richmond!  
 

I wonder where CoStar lands on this list (obviously, not in the top 1000). 

It looks like we gained two Fortune 1000 companies (one in the city) while Fortune 500 remained the same.   All, except for Owens & Minor and Universal Corp, gained on the list for a combined increase of 120 (excluding newcomers).

It does not look like CoStar makes either Fortune 1000 List.  Regardless, their official HQ is still Washington, DC.

https://www.virginiabusiness.com/article/35-virginia-companies-make-2020-fortune-1000-list/

[I miss RVA]

Florida company purchases the building which houses the RVA headquarters of Citizens Bank near Virginia Center Commons. From Richmond BizSense.

https://richmondbizsense.com/2021/07/09/bank-anchored-building-near-virginia-center-commons-sells-for-15m/

[KJHburg]

On 5/10/2021 at 3:54 PM, I miss RVA said:

As far back as the early/mid 80s when I was in undergrad, my urban planning professors frequently discussed the need for marketing to essentially "sell" Richmond as a progressive, pro-business destination city. While Richmond has long put a lot of elbow grease in pushing tourism (and there's a lot to see and do, no question), it's lamentable that the city or the business community has not pushed harder to market the metro RVA market as a good place to do business. Obviously that's been changing, especially over the last 10 years - but Jennifer Wakefield is spot on. i'm excited to see the Greater Richmond Partnership joining with other regional organization to try to put together a strong, coordinated effort to market Richmond. I'd like to see us leapfrog Raleigh. It's disheartening right now to see that executives are currently 33% more likely to choose Raleigh over RVA. Ditto the 20% greater inclination to go to Charlotte (although that's a little more understandable). It's all about competition - and Richmond seriously needs to step up its game in this competition. My professors said such more than 35 years ago - it's all about marketing. If Richmond is going to grow - and grow aggressively - it cannot rely on organic growth and tourism. Aggressive and forward-thinking marketing is the key to pushing Richmond much farther forward to become the city we all know and hope she can be.

it is all about marketing and tax reforms.  Metro Raleigh (not including metro Durham which currently a separate metro) is larger than Richmond and and it 1980 metro Richmond was 2x the size of metro Raleigh.  Not only did Raleigh catch up but passed metro Richmond.  Together Raleigh Durham one metro is not only larger than Richmond but bigger than metro Nashville.  It was agressive marketing of the Research Triangle Park and the state of NC in general.  Tax reforms have brought NC to the lowest corporate tax rate of any state in the country with one.  (couple of no income tax states of course)  NC has been and still is very agressive in business recruitment .  Virginia here of late has become much more agressive.    If was in econ development I would be pitching Richmond as the most affordable mid Atlantic location close to NE metro areas but lots cheaper and with a huge port nearby should be a huge distribution center for a wide area.  I would be poaching companies out of metro DC and bringing them or at least parts of them to Richmond where the living is more affordable and commutes easier.