While the office market is still struggling to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, some owners and property management teams have found creative ways to retain tenants while engaging with the local community.
From unique design elements, including skybridges and rooftop conference centers, to exciting tenant wellness, holiday and even mechanical-bull-riding events, these six building teams are going above and beyond to keep tenants engaged and make coming to the office each day worth the commute.
RBC Gateway: 250 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis
Open in 2022, RBC Gateway is the first Class-A office building constructed in the area since 2001. This 37-story, 1.2M SF mixed-use building includes a street-level restaurant, 524K SF of office space, 222 Four Seasons hotel rooms, 34 private residential condos and 17K SF of plaza and green space. The property is owned by Spear Street Capital and leased by JLL.
JLL Midwest North Regional Manager Todd Balsiger said the collaborative approach of these two companies ensures a seamless and efficient operation of the office space, bringing together the expertise of Spear Street Capital and JLL for the benefit of tenants and stakeholders alike.
The building features several on-site bars and restaurants, including Mara, Riva Terrace and Socca Café, and tenants are given VIP treatment by Four Seasons staff. They are offered exclusive perks such as bar and restaurant service provided by Four Seasons, discounted rates at the hotel and access to Four Seasons' conference rooms.
“The on-site property management team at RBC Gateway has worked diligently to create a fun and healthy workplace environment for tenants,” said Tannen Loge, JLL Property Management vice president and senior general manager. “They enhance awareness of all building amenity spaces by hosting events that activate the space.”
Some of these events include complimentary bike inspections in the bike room for National Bike to Work Day and Picnic on the Plaza events that utilize the building’s green space. There are also fitness-related events and amenities, including weekly group fitness classes, weekly chair massages, personal training options and sponsorship of the Minneapolis Downtown Dash 5K. The building was also the anchor property for the Taste of Minnesota.
Loge said that to reduce operating costs, the property team leverages JLL's market and national presence to negotiate lower pricing on services. One of the buildings’ main retention strategies is to foster strong relationships with tenants through effective communication.
“We have implemented various tenant communication initiatives, including weekly, monthly and semiannual tenant meetings,” Loge said. “These meetings provide an opportunity for the building team to share updates on ongoing projects, market insights and new offerings at the building. They also allow for direct communication from tenants to management, ensuring their voices are heard and their needs are addressed.”
Plaza Coral Gables: 2811 Ponce DeLeon Blvd., Coral Gables, Florida
The Plaza Coral Gables is a 2M SF mixed-use development four blocks off Coral Gables Miracle Mile. It features a 242-key Loews hotel, 165K SF of street-level retail and dining, 174 residential apartments, a 2,000-space parking garage and 455K SF of Class-A office space. The property is owned by Agave Holdings and managed by JLL.
Despite reports that the South Florida office market is feeling the pinch as tenants look to downsize leases, The Plaza Coral Gables is fully leased with no near-term rollover, according to Hans Okerstrom, senior general manager of JLL Property Management.
Okerstrom attributed the property’s continued high occupancy rate to its tenant engagement strategy, which is inspired by experiential marketing.
“The Plaza Coral Gables seeks to not only highlight building amenities available to users but also showcase community offerings and promote employee morale and well-being,” Okerstrom said. “This is achieved by curating events and activations such as wellness events, holiday activations, placemaking, and team-building activities and retailer integration.”
The development features a Mediterranean design with expansive stone slabs, arched floor-to-ceiling windows and gabled roofs. These classic design elements are blended with modern features like architectural steel cladding and parking structures.
“The retail merchandising creates a strategy designed to bring the neighborhood into the project,” Okerstrom said. “Once on-site, the project’s design, neighborhood merchandising and thoughtful placemaking creates an environment where all end users are engaged and enticed to remain on premises.”
Bank of America Plaza: 901 Main St., Dallas
Bank of America Plaza is a nearly 2M SF, 72-story building that has been a key part of Downtown Dallas since 1985. Owned by Metropolis and leased by JLL and Weitzman, this property is not only known for being the tallest building in Dallas but also for featuring 360-degree, unobstructed views of the city. Nineteen JLL staff members manage this property, and their tenures range from three months to 25 years.
Jennifer Clendening, managing director of JLL Property Management, said unique design features continue to draw tenants to the building year after year, along with its amenities and activation strategy.
“The building offers a city-within-a-city level of amenities, ensuring that tenants have access to a comprehensive range of services, facilities and conveniences all within its premises,” Clendening said.
The building has six dining options, a fully equipped gym, a full-service bank, on-site dry cleaning and a coffee shop. There is a tenant lounge, conference center, bike-share program, bike storage, golf cart escorts, 24/7 engineering, police and security services, state-of-the-art telecommunications infrastructure and a small data center.
“Additionally, the building's connection to the city’s underground tunnel system provides easy access to a wealth of hotels and restaurants, ensuring a vibrant and connected working environment for tenants,” Clendening said.
The building was renovated from 2014 to 2016 with a new grand plaza and valet area with eight visitor parking spaces for short-term parking, a pedestrian walkway along the plaza, new landscaping, LED lighting on the building exterior, new security desks, electronic tenant directories, internal stairs connecting the lobby and concourse levels, new finishes in passenger elevator cabs and three York Centrifugal Chillers.
There are also modernized escalators and elevators, a refurbished curtain wall and new access control system, an upgraded building automation system, new cove lighting in the elevator lobbies and upgrades to the concourse restrooms, heat exchanger valve replacements, a hospitality package of furniture and rugs, landscaping in the main lobby, an outdoor collaboration area with seating on the grand plaza, and rollup gates at the 800 Main garage entry and exit.
The building is LEED Gold and Fitwel certified, has been awarded Dallas Green Building Certification Platinum Level and was named a Green Lease Leader.
To ensure tenants remain engaged, Clendening said the Bank of America Plaza team promotes the building's tenant engagement program, building amenities and city events via the building’s HqO app and website. There are electric vehicle charging stations, valet parking, on-site auto wash and detailing service, and concierge services. There are also several tenant engagement events, including monthly happy hours, summer fiesta, Christmas afternoon tea, tequila pairing, holiday music and tenant gifts, Earth Day extravaganza, retail pop-up program, Alvéole bee workshops and more.
The team also regularly solicits feedback from tenants on the building’s amenities, services and tenant engagement activities through tenant visits and surveys.
“We will continuously elevate the tenant experience by offering quality amenities and delivering exceptional customer service,” Clendening said. “By prioritizing communication, cultivating relationships and enhancing the overall tenant experience, we aim to create a compelling environment that encourages lease renewals on an ongoing basis.”
1201 New York: 1201 New York Ave. NW, Washington, D.C.
1201 New York is a 444K SF Pembroke property four blocks from the White House and managed by JLL.
The building features floor-to-ceiling windows, a dual-level lobby that showcases an elevated sense of arrival with thoughtfully designed spaces for collaboration and special events, a multipurpose rooftop conference center, a terrace that overlooks CityCenter and a 6K SF wellness center with fitness equipment and a rock-climbing wall.
Max Timmons, senior asset manager for Pembroke, an international real estate company, said this array of amenities was designed and implemented to promote a healthy work-life balance for tenants.
Timmons said Pembroke values opportunities to connect with tenants, whether during the design process to customize their space to best suit their team’s needs or in planning weekly events and engagements, which include fitness and wellness classes, ice cream socials, tenant workshops and happy hours.
“A differentiator for Pembroke is that we are uniquely positioned to build relationships with tenants and be responsive to their needs with our Pembroke team here at 1201 New York,” Timmons said. “We also stay connected digitally through our building tenant app that keeps our tenants informed about what’s happening within the building community and us in tune with how we can engage.”
Timmons said Pembroke’s flexible strategy and deep understanding of D.C. market dynamics empower the team to create customized solutions that tenants find compelling and make them excited to connect in their workspaces at 1201 New York.
“Our core belief in continuous improvement provides the foundation for the long-term investments we make in Pembroke properties,” Timmons said. “We’re committed to elevated placemaking, thoughtful amenities and the delivery of a full range of complementary experiences that create community.”
5 Houston Center: 1401 McKinney St., Houston
In the heart of Downtown Houston, 5 Houston Center is a more than 580K SF office property owned by Spear Street Capital and managed by JLL. The building is close to Discovery Green, the George R. Brown Convention Center, Minute Maid Park and the Toyota Center, and JLL Executive Managing Director Tyler Garrett said what sets it apart are the community-focused amenities and programming designed to create a sense of place.
Some of these amenities include an on-site coffee shop, Common Grounds, with a common area in the sky lobby providing a communal meeting space that is connected via skybridge to the adjacent office towers. The building also has more Level 2 electric vehicle charging stations than any other office building in Downtown Houston.
“The building fosters a sense of community by inviting local artists to paint commissioned murals for our beehive area, as well as partnering with the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, located blocks away, on various events to highlight and promote up-and-coming visual and musical artists throughout the year,” JLL Senior General Manager Scott Talbert said.
Tenant events include an outdoor dance hall with wine garden, a Pups with Pints event where tenants interact with adoptable puppies, and a mechanical bull for a rodeo event where tenants can watch managers get thrown to the floor, as well as award-winning holiday celebrations with live music. Along with that, building management provides gifts to tenants.
“Recent tenant gifts include extremely popular custom-commissioned Lego models of the building with tenant logos and Lego build kits given out to tenant families to build later, creating a real sense of ownership and belonging for tenants,” Talbert said.
JLL Regional Manager Ed Bovermann said to keep tenants activated, the tenant engagement app offers access to all amenities, and tenants are offered prizes for engaging with the building in the app and social media.
“Full partnership between JLL management and JLL leasing teams allows us to coordinate the attention to detail and bespoke treatment for all tenants, but especially those that are approaching time to discuss renewals,” Garrett said. “This effort results in tenants having a positive view of the building before they start to think about their office lease renewals, which has resulted in high retention of our existing tenants.”
One Main Place: 101 SW Main St., Portland, Oregon
One Main Place is a more than 331K SF development owned by New York Life Real Estate Investors. It features ample office space, a coffee bar, sandwich shop, exercise facility with locker rooms, electric vehicle charging stations and property management on-site from JLL.
Jesse Neufeld, general manager of JLL Property Management, said one key thing that sets this office apart from the rest is its “fully energized lobby,” which, along with the coffee and sandwich shops, features an indoor fireplace across from a 650-gallon aquascape. The building works to keep tenants engaged with annual events including summer food carts, a fall business social and a holiday event with carolers. Its monthly Taste of Portland events feature local vendors providing samples of chocolate, wine, beer, floral and locally sourced artisan food items.
“We also have The Buzz, which is our own One Main Place rooftop beehive offering hive visits with the beekeepers, honeycomb tastings and our annual honey, candles, soap and lip balm, thanks to the direct work of our hardworking rooftop bees,” Neufeld said.
Thomas Hwang, New York Life head of asset management for the West Coast, said efforts like this helped take One Main Place from 58% occupied at the height of the pandemic to more than 94% occupancy today. Hwang also credited the efforts of the JLL team.
“The art of attracting and identifying new and future tenants to One Main was done largely thanks to the JLL leasing team,” Hwang said. “They went after both tenants who were potentially interested and those who were unaware of the property and its offerings. Not accepting an initial ‘no,’ they continued to push the property and the brand. The leasing team helped shape the narrative that led to this unprecedented turnaround in historically the most difficult time in the Portland downtown market.”
320 Park Avenue: 320 Park Ave., New York
320 Park Avenue is a Class-A, 766K SF office building in the heart of Manhattan. A joint venture between Mutual of America Financial Group and Munich Re, the asset is managed by MEAG, a Munich Re company, and JLL provides property management and leasing services.
Frank Doyle, vice chairman at JLL and leasing agent for the building, said that in response to a challenging market in 2022, building management completed a $40M amenity project that included a comprehensive renovation of the lobby and coffee bar, the addition of a second-floor grill and the creation of a state-of-the-art fitness center. The project also introduced more than 25K SF of premium amenity space on the 16th floor, featuring a bistro, lounge, conference rooms and a 6,500 SF outdoor terrace. There is also a renovated 8,600 SF event space on the 35th floor, and management partnered with Flik Hospitality Group to enhance dining and catering experiences throughout the building.
Doyle said building management has established several tenant engagement events and programming and implemented a responsive maintenance team to address issues promptly and minimize disruptions. They promote sustainability initiatives such as LEED Gold, Energy Star and a recycling program.
“Ensuring that tenants remain engaged and actively utilize building amenities requires a strategic approach focused on enhancing tenant experience, fostering community and continually adapting to their needs,” Doyle said. “Our office keeps tenants informed with regular updates about building events via email and our dedicated tenant portal.”
Doyle said keeping tenants renewing their leases each year requires a proactive and strategic approach to ensure they remain satisfied and see value in staying long-term. The 320 Park Avenue team accomplishes this through exceptional customer service, value-added amenities, competitive leasing terms, tenant engagement and community-building, he said.
“For an office building retention strategy in 2025 and beyond, we will need to address evolving trends in work environments, technology and tenant expectations,” he said. “Hybrid and flexible workspaces, sustainability and wellness, enhanced technology integration, adaptability and innovation will be front and center in our strategy.”
These properties are a testament to how smart design and amenity choices, paired with a strong tenant engagement program, can keep people coming back to the office. To learn more about what the future holds for the ever-evolving office market, check back here as we continue this series on office innovation.
This series is being produced in collaboration between JLL 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.
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