In Progress: Two Financial Center

[atlrvr]

After years of rumors, and change of plans....including a 15-story condo building with a ground floor Whole Foods, Two Financial Center has come full circle and will be built as a spec office tower.

Lincoln Property is buying the site from Rose Associates, and expectes to start construction in July on a 12-story, 214,000 sq. ft. office building. I'm really hoping the get some ground floor retail, though I'm not sure of the demand, judging by the fact that the adjacent Lincoln Plaza condo building hasn't filled any of its retail spaces in the 8 months since the rehab finished. It seems like a good place for a drug store, perhaps a Walgreen's, even though that's heresy around here.

Having lived right across the street, the area is lacking in some moderately priced restaurants.

I like this trend of disappearing surface lots. If this, Hayward Place, the W Hotel site all break ground this year as schedules, that eliminates every large parking lot in "lower downtown/midtown" that I can think of.

Also, there seems to be a lot of spec office towers in the work, while not a bad thing, is there really demand?

[Cotuit]

That's what I wonder, is there a demand? I don't pretend to be able to second guess these people who are putting millions on the line. I'm hoping they know something we don't.

[atlrvr]

There seems to be about 4M-5M sq. ft. of new office space proposed in the traditional "downtown" submarkets.....this would equal somewhere around 15,000 new jobs....I hope this is comes to pass. because it will help to keep the residential real estate market from further softerning, and will bring some much needed tax revenue to the city/state.

[atlrvr]

Two Financial is supposed to break ground next week, according to next weeks's BBJ (I wonder if that means the week after next? )

Miller is ready to go with permits, partners and money to build in hand. His project is much smaller and not considered a direct competitor for buildings twice the size of Two Financial.

Still, Miller will break ground on the 215,000-square-foot mid-rise building next week.

[atlrvr]

Well, after some persistence, I finally got my hands on the rendering of the new office "tower", via an invitation to the ceremonial groundbreaking which will be tomorrow morning. It looks amazingly similar to the residential plan, just fewer number of floors (but higher ceilings). As you can see in the rendering, it will be mostly brick, which I think is appropriate for the site....I wouldn't have minded for the upper floors to be a bit more contemporary, but oh well. Lincoln Property is having a new renderings commissioned, which I should be able to get my hands on in about a month.

Newest Rendering

Older Redering from when it was residential

[atlrvr]

This has been under construction for about 6 months now, but so far, they've just been shoring up a big hold for the basement/parking garage.

Their is now a website for the project that includes a rendering. I dig it....I think it mixes well with the Leather District.

http://www.2financialcenter.com/