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In a move from Orange County, Calif., Precision Discovery signed a 10,477-square-foot office lease at 8400 East Crescent Parkway, also known as Crescent VI, located in the city of Greenwood Village in the southeast suburban office submarket of Denver. The lease pushes the Crescent project, buildings V and VI, to 95% occupancy, according to Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF), exclusive leasing agent for the landlord Principal Global Investors. For comparison, the occupancy rate in the southeast suburban submarket is 85.5%.
The employee-owned industry leader in eDiscovery, computer forensics and cutting-edge software solutions will vacate its 10,000-square-foot, two-story tilt-up building located in an industrial area of Orange County, Calif. and instead will lease 4,000 square feet in Anaheim to maintain a local presence for its California-based clientele. Going forward, the New York City-headquartered firm intends to grow its operations in Denver to take advantage of the area’s lower cost of living, highly-educated work force and superior quality of life.
“Precision Discovery’s strategic move upgrades its former space from an industrial park to Class A office space in Denver’s leading suburban submarket - while creating substantial savings on rent,” stated NGKF Executive Managing Director Jeff Castleton. “It is notable that when the company announced the potential move to its employees, approximately two-thirds of the work force volunteered to move to Denver. The choice highlights our regional momentum; particularly recognizing Denver as a relocation hotspot.”
“Company relocations and expansion decisions in today’s highly competitive business environment are scrutinized and evaluated like never before,” said Tom Clark, CEO of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation. “As a region, we are encouraged that Precision Discovery-an employee-owned company-chose Metro Denver as the site to grow its future operations due to our high-tech workforce and a phenomenal lifestyle.”
This southeast suburban area is the largest Denver metro submarket, and is also home to the largest concentration of corporate headquarters, including seven of the state’s nine Fortune 500 headquarters. With access to a highly educated workforce - 42.5% of the region’s population possesses a Bachelor’s degree or higher - over 70% of the market’s total absorption over the past seven quarters occurred in this submarket, driven by continued organic growth and headquarters expansions and relocations.
“The recent influx of corporate headquarters and knowledge-based commerce has resulted in industry diversification and job creation that is far outpacing the nation,” noted Mr. Castleton. “The entire Denver metro area is benefiting from this expansion trend.”
Additional companies that have chosen Metro Denver over California include Redwood Trust, Visa U.S.A., and Cool Planet Energy Systems. In 2013, California-based Redwood Trust opened its new 20,000-square-foot financial services operations center at The Point at Inverness, bringing approximately 550 jobs to Colorado. Credit card giant Visa U.S.A. is leasing an additional 66,000 square feet at 8744 Lucent Boulevard, near its Highlands Ranch campus, and plans to add as many as 406 new technology jobs. Also based in California, Cool Planet Energy Systems announced in July it would move its global headquarters to Greenwood Village, as well as open its first manufacturing facility in the state - potentially creating hundreds of jobs over the next three years.
Crescent VI features a grand clock tower entrance and water features giving way to parks and walking trails, as well as a landmark location in the north DTC allowing for easy access to I-25, I-225 and numerous nearby amenities along Belleview Avenue and DTC Boulevard. Mr. Castleton may be reached at 303.892.1111 for more information.
About Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) is one of the world’s leading commercial real estate advisory firms. Together with its affiliates and London-based partner Knight Frank, NGKF employs more than 12,000 professionals, operating from more than 320 offices in established and emerging property markets on five continents.
With roots dating back to 1929, NGKF’s strong foundation makes it one of the most trusted names in commercial real estate. Its integrated services platform includes leasing advisory, global corporate services, investment sales and capital markets, consulting, program and project management, property and facilities management, and valuation services. A major force in the real estate marketplace, NGKF serves the local and global property requirements of tenants, landlords, investors and developers worldwide. For further information, visit www.ngkf.com.
NGKF is a part of BGC Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ: BGCP), a leading global brokerage company primarily servicing the wholesale financial and real estate markets. For further information, visit www.bgcpartners.com.