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By Gary Tasman For years, commercial property growth in Cape Coral lagged behind the city’s white-hot residential market. That trend, however, is changing. Commercial development is now booming in Cape Coral, thanks to simple economics. A large supply of residents and consumers creates a large demand for retail and commercial businesses. Cape Coral’s population has grown by more than 25% to 200,000 residents in just the last 10 years. Between now and 2025, we can expect to see it increase by another 10%. Take a quick drive down any of Cape Coral’s main transportation corridors, and you’ll see dozens of sites under construction, new businesses, and development opportunities. This trend will continue for many years to come. Ready to make a move ? Get started by contacting us. For more than a decade, Pine Island Road has been the focus of commercial growth in Cape Coral. This trend started in the early 2000s with the introduction of big box stores like Kohl’s, Target, and BJ’s Wholesale, as well as car dealerships and shopping centers. “Because the city was pre-platted primarily into residential lots, it was challenging for these early developers to gather enough property to build a large commercial complex,” explains Shawn Stoneburner of Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property SWFL. “But the city’s been very supportive of growth, especially along Pine Island Road. We’re now seeing a second wave of commercial development.” These new projects not only take advantage of vacant space, but also revitalize some stagnant properties. A new Fairfield Inn is under construction near the intersection of Pine Island and Pondella Roads, providing the City’s only hotel north of the Midpoint Bridge. The northeast end of Pine Island Road has also recently seen the opening of a new Nissan dealership, as well as a groundbreaking for Pine Island Village, a large retail and commercial project. “Pine Island Road is just one area where developers have an opportunity to make their mark,” says Stoneburner. “But there are also opportunities along Cape Coral’s other two main arteries, Del Prado Boulevard and Cape Coral Parkway. We see health care, entertainment, hospitality, and auto dealerships as strong markets for continued growth.” Cape Coral’s downtown has recently seen a flurry of activity, including new banks, retailers and restaurants, with more on the way. A Chase bank is in the works, as well as the long-awaited Village Square, a 250,000 square foot mixed-use facility that will combine both residential and commercial space when completed. “South Cape is filling in, but there the market isn’t saturated yet,” explains Stoneburner. “Our brokerage recently placed a large property under contract on Cape Coral Parkway near Del Prado, and we’re excited about the development potential.” Investors looking towards the future of the Cape Coral market may want to consider two other areas with strong development potential. Burnt Store Road presents great opportunities for growth, thanks in part to a rapidly growing population in Northwest Cape Coral. The current Burnt Store Road widening project will also benefit developers as access to Northwest Cape and Punta Gorda improves. A second area with great potential lies along US-41 from Del Prado to Burnt Store Road in Charlotte County. While not technically in Cape Coral, this corridor has easy access to the Cape and land available as commercial and industrial sites. A projected I-75 interchange will spark future growth, and smart investors will be ready to take advantage of the opportunity. To learn more about existing space available and development opportunities in Cape Coral, contact Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property SWFL, your go-to team for commercial brokerage needs. Our team knows the community and has access to the data that you need to make your next move in one of the fastest-growing markets in Florida.

By Gary Tasman For years, commercial property growth in Cape Coral lagged behind the city’s white-hot residential market. That trend, however, is changing. Commercial development is now booming in Cape Coral, thanks to simple economics. A large supply of residents and consumers creates a large demand for retail and commercial businesses. Cape Coral’s population has grown by more than 25% to 200,000 residents in just the last 10 years. Between now and 2025, we can expect to see it increase by another 10%. Take a quick drive down any of Cape Coral’s main transportation corridors, and you’ll see dozens of sites under construction, new businesses, and development opportunities. This trend will continue for many years to come. Ready to make a move? Get started by contacting us. For more than a decade, Pine Island Road has been the focus of commercial growth in Cape Coral. This trend started in the early 2000s with the introduction of big box stores like Kohl’s, Target, and BJ’s Wholesale, as well as car dealerships and shopping centers. “Because the city was pre-platted primarily into residential lots, it was challenging for these early developers to gather enough property to build a large commercial complex,” explains Shawn Stoneburner of Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property SWFL. “But the city’s been very supportive of growth, especially along Pine Island Road. We’re now seeing a second wave of commercial development.” These new projects not only take advantage of vacant space, but also revitalize some stagnant properties. A new Fairfield Inn is under construction near the intersection of Pine Island and Pondella Roads, providing the City’s only hotel north of the Midpoint Bridge. The northeast end of Pine Island Road has also recently seen the opening of a new Nissan dealership, as well as a groundbreaking for Pine Island Village, a large retail and commercial project. “Pine Island Road is just one area where developers have an opportunity to make their mark,” says Stoneburner. “But there are also opportunities along Cape Coral’s other two main arteries, Del Prado Boulevard and Cape Coral Parkway. We see health care, entertainment, hospitality, and auto dealerships as strong markets for continued growth.” Cape Coral’s downtown has recently seen a flurry of activity, including new banks, retailers and restaurants, with more on the way. A Chase bank is in the works, as well as the long-awaited Village Square, a 250,000 square foot mixed-use facility that will combine both residential and commercial space when completed. “South Cape is filling in, but there the market isn’t saturated yet,” explains Stoneburner. “Our brokerage recently placed a large property under contract on Cape Coral Parkway near Del Prado, and we’re excited about the development potential.” Investors looking towards the future of the Cape Coral market may want to consider two other areas with strong development potential. Burnt Store Road presents great opportunities for growth, thanks in part to a rapidly growing population in Northwest Cape Coral. The current Burnt Store Road widening project will also benefit developers as access to Northwest Cape and Punta Gorda improves. A second area with great potential lies along US-41 from Del Prado to Burnt Store Road in Charlotte County. While not technically in Cape Coral, this corridor has easy access to the Cape and land available as commercial and industrial sites. A projected I-75 interchange will spark future growth, and smart investors will be ready to take advantage of the opportunity. To learn more about existing space available and development opportunities in Cape Coral, contact Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property SWFL, your go-to team for commercial brokerage needs. Our team knows the community and has access to the data that you need to make your next move in one of the fastest-growing markets in Florida.

Gary Tasman, the CEO of Cushman & Wakefield in Fort Myers, was quoted in the News-Press regarding the future of office space and how it is affected by the current pandemic. “That culture of inter-personal action and relationship-building is really going to be the underlying strategy for almost all office uses,” he said. Additionally, Tasman discusses and gives his predictions based on the results of the Cushman and Wakefield  “XSF@home Survey” which was meant to gauge COVID-19’s impact on the workplace. Read article at Newspress.com

By Gary Tasman COVID-19 has changed the way we all look at retail, both online and traditional brick-and-mortar. As a result, warehouse and retail spaces are in demand as we transition into new ways of doing business. If you have retail or industrial real estate, buyers may be searching for your property right now. In fact, it’s the perfect time to sell for many commercial property owners in our region. For the last decade, we’ve watched online sales slowly climb as a part of overall retail, and recent COVID-19 safe-at-home orders have accelerated this trend. More people are shopping online than ever before. The market research company eMarketer predicts e-commerce will be responsible for about 14.5% percent of total retail sales, or $710 billion, this year. That trend only figures to climb over the next four years, making up 18% of all retail sales by the middle of the decade. Ready to make a move?  Get started by contacting us. This trend has created the need for many companies to expand their production, storage, and distribution capabilities and facilities. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, e-commerce leasing activity is exploding. Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, about 35% of industrial leasing activity was related to e-commerce, said Shawn Stoneburner of Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property of Southwest Florida. Stoneburner says the first quarter of this year was one of the strongest leasing quarters in three years nationwide. Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida and its access to strong local and national resources are in the perfect position to fill any retail or fulfillment space demand from a vast inventory throughout the region, especially for those tied into the e-commerce boom. With more people staying home and shopping online, projections are that an additional 1 billion square feet of industrial and warehouse space could be needed by 2025. Traditional retail is also back on the rise too, as the nation and Southwest Florida gradually reopen. Despite headlines about closures at national retailers like JC Penney and Neiman Marcus, many brick-and-mortar retailers are seeing an uptick in business, and are on the hunt for new and better commercial space that better meets the “new normal” needs of the consumer. According to data released recently by the US Census Bureau, retail sales, including food services, jumped 7.5% in June after climbing a dramatic 18.2% in May, buoyed by the country reopening its economy. Although record declines were the story in March and April, the June rebound actually surpassed retail sales from June of 2019. Retail categories experiencing positive market changes are sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores, food and beverage stores, building materials, garden equipment and supply dealers, automotive parts and tire stores. Lee County has existing space available that can be converted quickly to meet the needs created by COVID-19. If you own a commercial property, now is the perfect time to sell, as there are qualified buyers ready to make a move. The experts at Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida are your go-to team for commercial property needs. We are equipped with the passion, knowledge, creativity, data and inventory to help businesses find the commercial properties they need to become better because of the pandemic. The team at Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida wants to speak with you, show you our inventory and develop a plan that best fits your needs. Reach us at 239-829-5400 or email timetosell@cpswfl.com.

Certain phrases surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic have sparked global conversations, the most notable being social distancing – the entire world now understands the importance of staying six feet away. Across the globe, we’re in different stages of experiencing the pandemic. But, as we begin visualizing life after COVID-19, we must begin to think about what a six feet society will look like and how we will adjust. “The 6 feet rule” isn’t going away any time soon and we at Cushman & Wakefield understand how critical it is to normalize this guideline into everyday life. Eventually, we will all return to work, but we must not forget this golden rule. Introducing the 6 Feet Office The 6 Feet Office is our conceptual idea to help our clients prepare for their employees to return to the office. We’re here to help you prepare for the return to the office. We’re here to help you maintain social distancing while creating an effective workplace. We’re here to help you embrace the new normal. Learn more about the Six Feet Office at https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/netherlands/six-feet-office.

The new normal will be a total workplace ecosystem Through our proprietary Experience per Square FootTM (XSF) tool, Cushman & Wakefield has captured more than 2.5 million data points from workers all over the globe in the pre-COVID-19 era and a further 1.7 million data points from more than 50,000 respondents in the current work from home environment. Our workplace specialists analyzed this data to develop a report on the future of workplace, which gives you an inside look at the unrivaled insights into how employees are coping right now – identifying their key successes and critical challenge. With this data, Cushman & Wakefield has developed a report that provides insight into the future workplace. Read more about The Future of Workplace at https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/insights/covid-19/the-future-of-workplace.