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CBD Drives Chicago Office Growth in Q1

Downtown drove growth in the Chicago region’s office market during the first quarter, according to Cushman & Wakefield. This was especially pronounced in Class A, where the vacancy rate fell 110 basis points from Q4 2018.

Three major drivers have propelled growth in the CBD, per Cushman & Wakefield. They’re technology firm growth, suburban-to-urban migration and absorption from co-working providers.

Although 2019 has yet to produce any “behemoth tech leases” in the CBD, Cushman & Wakefield notes that “substantial organic growth is occurring.” An example is Upwork’s expansion from 12,000 square feet to 67,730 square feet in a relocation to 525 W. Van Buren (pictured) this past January.

Mondelez International was the latest major suburban tenant to sign in the CBD, Cushman & Wakefield notes. Meanwhile, co-working growth continues: WeWork leased 134,000 square feet at 167 North Green during Q1, and Convene signed three new leases totaling 185,000 square feet.

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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 16-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 7-10 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).

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