Writer: Eleana Teran
2 min read January 2024 — As the country continues to navigate a challenging commercial real estate landscape, innovative competition and strategic planning are shaping Charlotte’s office market. Charlotte Center City Partners (CCCP), in conjunction with CBI, developed the Reimagining Vintage Office Design Competition, in which leaders from both public and private sectors in Charlotte are brainstorming transformative solutions for the city’s uptown market.
“We have the challenge of some of our vintage buildings and helping the community think about how we can reposition some of these assets,” Michael Smith, president and CEO of Charlotte Center City Partners, told Invest:.
“There is a great deal of opportunity for these buildings as office assets or to be repurposed into other uses, whether institutional, hospitality or residential. By adding activities, we’re supporting the jobs we have now and also leveraging new jobs for the future.”
The office design competition’s aim is to revitalize the city’s business hub by repurposing aging assets into vibrant activity centers. This initiative brought forward groundbreaking proposals, with top honors awarded to Progressive AE, Childress Klein, Archer Western, and Cushman & Wakefield for their One Wells Fargo revitalization plan, and to Asana Partners, SK+I Architecture, and MRP Realty for their Brooklyn and Church project.
Second place was awarded to Perkins + Will and Balfour Beatty Construction for their First Citizens Plaza project, and to Gresham Smith, DPR Construction, and Do Greater Charlotte for their 500 N. Tryon St. development.
The contest’s significance extends beyond the immediate rejuvenation of physical spaces. It is a catalyst for a broader dialogue on urban revitalization, highlighting the urgency to move away from traditional commercial real estate models. “It’s important that we look at what we’re missing and get creative in what we add. The best employment centers consist of many things and looking at these assets with fresh eyes will be crucial,” Smith said.
According to Marcus Millichap’s 4Q23 report, Charlotte’s office market is shifting, with tenants increasingly seeking modern, amenity-rich, and transit-accessible spaces. This trend is especially evident in Midtown, where newer Class A buildings built after the 2018 Blue Line extension are attracting strong demand. However, a record-high vacancy rate in June 2023, along with slight dips in asking rents, and a more pronounced 0.3% decrease in Class B/C rents in Q2 suggests a potential near-term slowdown for this specific sector. This shows the need for creative strategies in reviving older buildings and revitalizing the uptown market, as new developments and strategic location choices become increasingly important for attracting businesses.
Key industry leaders underscore the need for a nuanced approach. Michael Mesnard, president of Cline Design Associates, suggests rethinking the use of underperforming properties and locations.
“The build-out continues to move down away from Uptown. We’re seeing many commercial interior and architectural retrofits after the pandemic affected the office market. It’s not downsizing but repurposing spaces. People are looking for more “resi-mmercial,” as we like to call it, which are commercial buildings that want a more comfortable and home-like feel,” Mesnard told Invest:.
The office market’s evolution in Charlotte is not just about filling vacancies or constructing new buildings. It’s about a complex interplay of economic, social, and urban planning factors. As leaders like Smith and Mesnard suggest, the solution lies in creative thinking and collaboration to ensure Charlotte’s office market remains vibrant and economically robust.
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