Texas State Historical Association Leases Larger Space
The Texas State Historical Association has leased 5,300 square feet at 4412 Spicewood Springs Road.
Burke Kennedy of Commercial Texas represented the Texas State Historical Association. Rob Stern with Rob Stern Co. represented the Landlord.
Commercial Texas represents Yarbrough Southwest
Yarbrough Southwest has leased 4,809 square feet at Braker 7, 11100 Metric Blvd., Building 7.
Dan Meyer and Lee Ellison of Commercial Texas LLC represented Yarbrough. David Alsmeyer represented the Landlord.
Texas Bar Foundation Leases More Office Space
The Texas Bar Foundation recently leased 1,082 square feet at Lavaca Plaza, 504 Lavaca Street.
Carl Condon of Commercial Texas represented the Texas Bar Foundation. CBRE represented the Landlord.
The Premier Legal Search Firm in Texas Needs More Space
Prescott Legal Professionals recently leased 1,856 square feet of office space at 504 Lavaca Street.
Carl Condon, Burke Kennedy and Mike Kennedy of Commercial Texas represented Prescott Legal Professionals. Jonathan Tate of CB Richard Ellis represented the Landlord.
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 Land Trumps Leasing
By Dan Meyer, Associate, Industrial & Land Group
It may be more April showers for the office market, but it's all roses for land.
While the predictions for a slow spring leasing season are becoming the reality, the good news is we're still optimistic about the commercial land market in Austin and Central Texas. Prices remain high throughout the region, primarily because buyers know the potential of the region and want a piece of it.
Economists and real estate experts see the migration of people into Central Texas from other cities around the country remaining very strong. Experts agree over the long run growth in the region will continue.
As they say, no one is making any more land-- it's a strategic investment that's sure to grow.
Downtown Living Demand is Strong, Study Shows
Republished from Austin Business Journal
The steel and glass residential towers set to reshape the downtown Austin skyline aren't a pipedream. They're coming, and they're going to be filled.
The analysis from Texas economist Ray Perryman suggests that while the nation battles a housing correction, Austin's residential market remains relatively healthy. Moreover, says Perryman, there is clear demand among Austinites to live in the city's vibrant downtown.
There are currently about 6,000 people living downtown. And with about 4,000 residential units under construction or planned around downtown, that population is expected to double over the next two years. Perryman says that with the Austin area adding more than 40,000 new residents annually, the local housing market will continue to fair well and rising energy costs and traffic woes will drive a growing interest in urban living.
"This housing market will fundamentally support the type of housing being developed downtown," Perryman said at a morning press conference at City. "There is an amble population to absorb these units."
Asked whether those who desire to live downtown could actually afford to purchase units, most of which are over $500,000, Perryman says that the market is there, particularly among young professionals coming to the area making good money in expanding fields like technology. He pointed out that if less than one percent of the entire Austin area population chose to live downtown, they would fill up all of the existing units, as well as those being planned, downtown.
"We are seeing a remarkable resurgence in downtown Austin," says Mayor Will Wynn, who has been a staunch supporter of drawing more residents to downtown. Wynn calls the blend of condo projects such as 360 and The Austonian and rentals like The Monarch and AMLI 2nd Street a healthy mix. He also points out that projects like the redevelopment of the Green Water Treatment Plant site will include a strong affordable housing component, allowing residents who cannot afford high-priced units a chance to enjoy downtown living.
Perryman's company, The Perryman Group, was commissioned by the developers of the Austonian project to conduct the study.
Traffic and Austin: The New Relationship
Burke Kennedy, Associate, Tenant Representation Group
 As Austin has grown over the past fifteen years, it has gained recognition from magazines and publications numerous times, both for the good and the bad.
The Good: Rated as one of the 15 Best Places to Live by Money magazine in 2006, Austin has grown from a sleepy government, college town to a burgeoning hotspot on the national and international radar.
The Bad: The Texas Transportation Institute ranked Austin as number one in traffic congestion for medium-sized cities across the nation.
Interior Austin, some would say, should be building new roads and expanding existing ones, but with MoPac and IH-35 being planned close to 50 years ago, and Loop 360 having stoplights seemingly everywhere, the road solution may be years away.
Angelos Angelou, in his 2008 Economic Forecast, stated that Austin’s population is growing by approximately 42,000 people per year and is expected to double in twenty years. The Austin Chamber of Commerce has growth projected for the 1.5 million-person metro area at a three percent growth rate per annum.
One local commentator said that Austin has 70 new cars on the road everyday, and looking at the license plates, it’s easy to imagine that number and then some. With the influx of new arrivals gushing into Austin, the traffic issue can only get worse.
Will the bad outweigh the good? Will traffic begin to influence decision makers and employees alike to choose to work closer to home, or at least away from major congestion points? If you live in Austin, you have been snarled in traffic on one of the five major highways in town: MoPac (Loop 1), Loop 360, IH-35, Research Blvd. (183), or Highway 71 (Highway 290).
Commercial Texas’ clients are beginning to express concern regarding drive-times for their employees, as the unemployment rate stays low and the traffic continues to get worse. Roadways that were once viewed as easy, quick commutes have become bogged down in the ever increasing congestion.
Recent examples:
One local consulting firm, while in the early stages of the office location process, expressed their desire not to be in certain projects and areas, not because of the price or quality, but because of the traffic surrounding the projects.
Another firm’s employees got into the mix on location. With the majority driving in from Leander and Cedar Park, they wanted to pass on a project that was closer to their homes because another project, more than a mile away on another highway, was faster to get to.
With Austin’s growth rate, and the slow progress of updating our roadway infrastructure to support it, location will remain a top-of-mind issue. However the definition of “location” is no longer simply about amenities and perceived prestige, it’s about commutes, location of the workforce and access. We believe the exclamation -- “Have you seen the traffic there at 5:00 pm?” will become more commonplace.
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