Trends in Office and Industrial Parks
March 12, 2021
Of course, the big factor impacting office and industrial parks going into 2021 is COVID-19. The pandemic has reduced business production and workforce (through illness, social distancing, and remote working), disrupted the supply chain and cash flow, and brought about significant investments in technology.
Across the nation, the demand for suburban office parks is rising as more skilled workers move back to suburbs, due to concerns about housing costs and quality of education — they also feel safer from COVID-19 and the civil unrest that is happening in some larger cities.
“The most notable shift is toward lower-intensity spaces, where getting into and out of buildings can be done without close contact to others,” says Mark Stapp, professor of Real Estate at Arizona State University in Phoenix.
This trend is compelling more developers to consider older office parks in suburban areas as attractive opportunities for redevelopment — especially as targets for millennials and businesses that hope to attract millennials.