It's Renovation Season For Some Commercial Landlords

Emily Micucci Craig Johnston of R.W. Holmes Realty in Wayland, shows off the newly renovated 24 Prime Parkway in Natick, a 107,000-square-foot building that houses The MathWorks and several other companies.

Courtesy This architect rendering depicts what 5 Omni Way in Chelmsford will look like after an extensive renovation. A number of landlords across MetroWest are revitalizing their commercial office properties in an attempt to attract the right tenants. Griffith Properties is undertaking the Chelmsford renovation on spec, or without a future tenant secured.

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By Emily Micucci

Business tenants looking for commercial office space often look to MetroWest as an affordable alternative to Boston that's still highly accessible and close to all the right amenities.

Austin Smith, senior vice president of marketing and real estate at Groom Construction, which has an office in Salem, described it as the place to be for the "value-oriented tenant."

But despite the appeal that exists, Smith and others say there is a growing trend among the region's commercial office building owners to invest money in their properties to make them stand out in a sea of office space that is, on the whole, dated and tired. Landlords are sprucing up and renovating their properties to lure in desirable tenants.

According to Garry Holmes, president of R.W. Holmes Realty in Wayland, the vast majority of MetroWest office buildings were constructed in the late 1980s, though many were built earlier, in the 1960s and 70s. Holmes said as a whole, the MetroWest office stock is due for renovation.

"Some landlords get it and understand it's a necessary evil, in order to attract the tenants, to make those large capital investments," he said, adding that others let their properties sit on the market for a year or so before realizing they need to invest in the property if they're going to find new tenants.

The following are properties that have been part of the MetroWest landscape for decades, whose owners decided to invest in renovations in the hopes of renewing interest among would-be tenants, as well as to make them suitable for their own needs.

5 Omni Way, Chelmford

Griffith Properties of Boston bought the building known as 5 Omni Way in Chelmsford this spring for $3.8 million, a far cry from the $18.3 million the building fetched in 2005, before it was foreclosed on. The new owners, Griffith Properties of Boston and Echo Bridge Partners of Wellesley, have decided to invest $1 million in an extensive renovation on both the interior and façade.

Maugel Architects of Harvard is leading the redesign of 5 Omni Way. Brent Maugel, president of the firm, called it a "pretty ambitious remodeling of the building," which includes redesigning the landscaping, adding metal panels to the façade of the building for a more modern look, the construction of a new, two-story lobby, creating a new site plan, and even building amenities like a café, fitness club, and common meeting area.

Maugel called the renovation "speculative," meaning the owners are moving forward without an agreement to lease the property to a particular tenant. Instead, they hope a tenant will take notice once reconstruction is underway next month.

This is just one of about a dozen recent speculative renovation projects the firm has been hired to design, according to Maugel. One example was a 650,000 square-foot building in Salem, built by Digital Equipment Corp., a computer system and software firm founded in the 1960s and acquired in the late 90s. Maugel said the client paid for an extensive renovation, and then nearly filled the building with new tenants.

According to Maugel, it's not enough for a property owner to present potential tenants with designs to show what the building could look like.

"We're finding that, unless the construction is actually being done, it doesn't pique the interest of the potential tenant," Maugel said.

53 Ayer Road, Littleton

FIBA Technologies of Millbury purchased the property at 53 Ayer Road in Littleton for its own use in September 2012. Once a concrete pre-cast facility that drew stone from a nearby quarry, Smith said the building has been vacant for years.

"It's had several different owners and hasn't really been able to make a go of it," Smith.

Seeing an opportunity to expand in new office and manufacturing space in Littleton, FIBA, which makes transportation rigs for gas storage vessels, has decided to invest its own money to modernize the building and make it an attractive work environment.

Groom Construction is leading the project for FIBA, and Smith declined to share the project price tag. But he said the major component of the project includes the construction of a new, two-story office building on the southeast corner of the building. Right now, the building contains no habitable office space.

"We're starting from scratch with this office building," said Smith, who estimated it was built in the late 1960s or early 70s.

Smith believes a heightened sensitivity about creating a pleasant work environment is driving more property owners to renovate, whether they're leasing the property to another company or inhabiting it themselves. Companies want the best employees to work for them, so they want to create contemporary work spaces that are bright, open for collaboration and comfortable, Smith said.

24 Prime Park Way, Natick

The recent interior renovations completed at 24 Prime Park Way in Natick prove that location isn't everything. A nice interior and façade, as well as amenities, are also vital.

The building, which recently housed some of Natick-based MathWorks Inc.'s offices, is conveniently located just off Route 9, and just minutes to the Massachusetts Turnpike.

Built in the late 1980s, the façade looks fresher than its age. But inside, owner Franchi Management of Natick decided to renovate, updating the lobby and amenities, including a fitness center and cafeteria, adding new lighting and sprucing up the landscaping.

Holmes, of R.W. Holmes, which represents Franchi and some of its tenants, said the project created a better first impression, and interest picked up almost immediately when it was completed a year ago. Craig Johnston, senior vice president at R.W. Holmes said the owners signed three new tenants, following renovations.

Johnston said it's crucial for both landlords and tenants to understand the key elements of a quality office building today in, order to stay competitive in leasing and creating appealing work environments.

"You've got to educate your landlord, and you've got to educate your tenant, on the competition," Johnston said.