Vacant Office Building Nears Sellout as Condos

[finehoe]

What do you do with an office building without enough tenants? Repurpose it as luxury condos, play up its river view ... and watch affluent empty-nesters come buy!

Before:



After:



The building was situated in Alexandria, Va., a city of 150,000 in the backyard of the nation's capital. Yet, despite its convenient location and view of the Potomac River, most companies considered the structure's 155,000-square-foot footprint too small, its C shape awkward, its courtyard a waste, and its windows too small for sufficient natural light.

But developer EYA saw the site's potential. The firm, based in nearby Bethesda, Md., had completed enough adaptive-reuse projects to recognize a diamond, even if it needed substantial polishing.

EYA knew that the footprint that wouldn't work for offices could be ideal for residences, due to its single-loaded corridors. And with new, bigger windows, all the units would have ample light, many with riverfront views. The stepped-back configuration even allowed for multiple roof terraces.

http://www.multifamilyexecutive.com/design-development/mostly-vacant-office-building-nears-sellout-as-luxe-condos_o

[SunKing]

the original building was cool looking as well.  looks like a William Morgan

[jaxjaguar]

I've always wondered why our office buildings downtown don't do this... Middle income apartment, nothing too big or too fancy. Better to lease something cheap than nothing at all.

[dp8541]

I am not positive what the current occupancy is of the riverfront building between the landing and the Hyatt - but that structure looks comparable to the example in NOVA above!

[I-10east]

^^^I was thinking about that ziggurat-esque building as well.

[fsujax]

That building is used by the Hyatt as meeting space. It is a part of the hotel.

[finehoe]

http://www.eya.com/oronoco

[Dog Walker]

We used to compare that building downtown that is now part of the Hyatt to a Maya Temple.  I think it started as State Offices and we would joke that if someone screwed up they higherups would cut their hearts out and roll them down the stairs.

[copperfiend]

Maybe we could do this with the jail one day. Not a lot of square footage but those river views!!!

[SunKing]

The building next to the Hyatt is a Morgan building but it is the Police Memorial building and is not owned by Hyatt.

[ChriswUfGator]

I'm guessing the failure as an office building followed the typical trend of a large property management company's refusal to lower rents in the face of declining occupancy. I agree that the terraces and courtyard would be a waste of space in Alexandria VA, where it's pretty cold to spend much time outdoors for 1/2 - 2/3 of the year. But it was a cool original design.

[finehoe]

I'm guessing the failure as an office building followed the typical trend of a large property management company's refusal to lower rents in the face of declining occupancy. I agree that the terraces and courtyard would be a waste of space in Alexandria VA, where it's pretty cold to spend much time outdoors for 1/2 - 2/3 of the year. But it was a cool original design.

LOL.  It's the mid-atlantic, not Siberia.  Sidewalk cafe's operate 8-9 months a year in Alexandria, this wouldn't be that different (also note one of the selling points of the condos are outdoor kitchens).

[ChriswUfGator]

I went to military school not far from there, and it was freezing balls half the year. Of course being from Florida, I'd be the first to admit that what I think is cold is probably a balmy day to somebody who lives there and is used to the climate. I hated New Hampshire for the same reason.