In A Tough Office Market, A New Raleigh Property Thrives With A Focus On Wellness

Office markets across the country have been struggling, and Raleigh, North Carolina, is no exception. 

Raleigh-Durham’s office vacancy rate was 15.6% in Q1 2024, a 140-basis-point increase quarter-over-quarter. Despite this number, there are signs of hope, since it is less than the national office vacancy rate of 18.2%. Additionally, there are success stories in the market, including 1000 Social, a new Class-A office tower at The Exchange Raleigh that is already 51% leased despite just opening in April. 

Owned and developed by Dewitt Carolinas, 1000 Social is the flagship office tower at The Exchange Raleigh, a 40-acre mixed-use office, retail and residential development that features a 4-acre park at the heart of the community. 

1000 Social’s new office tenants include GFL Environmental, The Whitley Law Firm and Summit Design and Engineering Services. In addition, Skin Pharm will open the first Triangle location of its popular medical aesthetic clinic at 1000 Social this fall. Todd Saieed, CEO of Dewitt Carolinas, said the inspiration was to build something stunning and modern that would foster bold vision while respecting the natural environment and nurturing health and wellness.

“We designed 1000 Social with the commitment to create office space that will inspire workers to return to the office in a place and space that promotes balanced living,” Saieed said. “We’re thrilled to see the community responding to our vision and embracing the building and the development. The Exchange Raleigh community will serve as a gathering place and a vibrant hub for Raleigh.” 

1000 Social’s amenities were designed for the modern employee — one who has grown used to working wherever they are most comfortable. With this in mind, the building features private balconies on each floor for outdoor work, multiple tenant amenity courtyards with comfortable furniture and a 12th-floor shared terrace with views of Raleigh and The Exchange’s signature 4-acre park. There are also high-speed destination elevators, custom art installations and concierge services on-site. 

A 2023 Gensler study of 14,000 employees found that younger workers want access to alternative spaces like coffee bars and fitness centers in their offices. 1000 Social offers a variety of food and beverage options on the ground floor featuring everything from coffee — The Optimist Raleigh will be opening a new location there this summer — to cocktails. A new fine-dining restaurant that will put a modern twist on classic American Southern cuisine from co-owners Patrick Shanahan and Saif Rahman, who will also be the restaurant's new head chef, is slated to open this fall. This will be The Exchange’s first restaurant, with more anticipated to follow, said Steven Beattie, executive vice president of Dewitt Carolinas.

“We’re incredibly excited that Patrick and Saif have chosen 1000 Social at The Exchange as the home for their first restaurant collaboration,” said Beattie. “This really sets a high standard for the food and beverage experience at The Exchange; we look forward to announcing more restaurants joining them at 1000 Social later this summer.” 

In addition to exciting food and beverage options, 1000 Social tenants will have access to a Life Time luxury athletic country club that will break ground next door in early 2025 featuring an 80K SF, three-story fitness facility and a 35K SF rooftop beach club. Life Time will also bring a collection of luxury multifamily units to The Exchange called Life Time Living. It will be the company’s seventh apartment tower, and units will range from about 650 to 1.5K SF and aim to cater to today’s working professionals, with an emphasis on health and wellness.   

As with all properties within The Exchange, 1000 Social is committed to boosting the health and productivity of its tenants, Saieed said. Investing in the WELL building standard was just one part of that commitment; the firm expects to be named one of the first LEED and WELL-certified office buildings in Raleigh this summer. This certification states that a building has implemented evidence-based design, policy and operational strategies to improve health and well-being. 

“The office suites at The Exchange Raleigh’s Social Towers are designed to foster inspiration, collaboration and individual wellness,” Saieed said. “Our investment in the WELL certification process is indicative of our belief that healthy people are happy and productive people.”

He said the building’s advanced ionization air filtration, sophisticated lighting and HVAC systems, as well as access to The Exchange’s park and greenway trails, are features that will contribute to it meeting the WELL Building Standard. Research shows that WELL standards can not only improve employee well-being but also their productivity and satisfaction with their workplace. 

A key indicator of a successful office building is the vitality of the community it stands in. Raleigh, ranked the No. 1 city for jobs and IT due to its growing technology and life sciences sectors, was just named one of the best-performing cities in the country — second only to Austin. Professionals from across the U.S. are flocking to Raleigh for job opportunities, with the city’s population growing by more than 5% since 2020. 

With Raleigh primed for further growth, Saieed said it’s clear that 1000 Social is well-positioned to cater to these new businesses and workers, as well as to those who have been rooted in the area for generations — such as the building’s developer, Dewitt Carolinas. 

Saieed and his longtime friend and partner Ven Poole have been planning a legacy project in Raleigh for decades.

“We spent 20 years assembling these parcels of land and dreaming about this project,” Saieed said. “We have deep roots here — this is the land we played on as boys — and we want to create something that our families, friends and community will be proud of. We want 1000 Social and The Exchange Raleigh to have a lasting positive impact on the city we call home.”

This article was produced in collaboration between The Exchange Raleigh and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.