Newmark[1] announces it has advised on the sale of Cascadian, a 211,066-square-foot project in the Eastlake Corridor of South Lake Union. The newly constructed, nine-story office building was delivered to market in August 2021, with shell spec immediately available presenting the flexibility to covert to life science.
Newmark Co-Head of U.S. Capital Markets Kevin Shannon, Vice Chairman Nick Kucha, Executive Managing DirectorsKen White andRob Hannan, Senior Managing Director Michael Molland DirectorsJeffrey Hodson andRachel Jones represented the sellers, Unico Properties and Partners Group. Newmark’s leasing teamJesse Ottele, Cavan O’Keefe, and Daniel Segeralso advised through all stages of the marketing, due diligenceand the sales process. The buyers, Invesco and Lincoln Property Group, were self-represented.
“Once again, Unico and Partners group has developed a timely trophy project in one of the fastest growing markets in the country,” said Shannon. “Cascadian is positioned in the heart of Seattle’s life science cluster and ideally surrounded by industry drivers including Seattle Children’s Research Institute, University of Washington, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. With lack of available new construction for existing life science, this is a timely project in a market that is extremely attractive to host life science tenants.”
Kucha added, “Cascadian is a premier facility, designed and constructed to the highest technical specifications and capable of accommodating a broad range of occupancy requirements.”
Seattle has ranked among the strongest real estate markets in the country in recent years. Development is booming in Puget Sound; the region ranks second in the nation with 9.1 million square feet of office space under construction, trailing only Manhattan, according to Newmark Research. Average asking rents for office space increased by 0.8% to $42.29/SF FSG for the quarter, nearly on par with the prior record of $42.33/SF FSG set in second-quarter 2020. This is representative of the rapid recovery rate the Puget Sound has seen since the low point of the pandemic, and conditions continue to trend upward with a 35% increase tenant inquiries and active space requirements.
One driving force behind Seattle’s recent success is its emergence as a national life science hub, which can be attributed to the combination of research, NIH funding, strong employment growth, educational opportunities and depth of skilled labor pool. The well-established technology sector in the region offers additional opportunity for innovation and collaboration in the life science field.
About Newmark
Newmark Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: NMRK), together with its subsidiaries (“Newmark”), is a world leader in commercial real estate, seamlessly powering every phase of the property life cycle. Newmark’s comprehensive suite of services and products is uniquely tailored to each client, from owners to occupiers, investors to founders, and startups to blue-chip companies. Combining the platform’s global reach with market intelligence in both established and emerging property markets, Newmark provides superior service to clients across the industry spectrum. Newmark generated revenues in excess of $2.2 billion for the trailing twelve months ending June 30, 2021. Newmark’s company-owned offices, together with its business partners, operate from over 160 offices with approximately 6,200 professionals around the world. To learn more, visit nmrk.com or follow @newmark.
[1] Dba Newmark Knight Frank in California
