Calgary’s already a popular place to start a company or open a branch office, but that process may have become even easier.
Regus Business Centres has opened a 40,500-sq.-ft. facility on two floors in Bankers Hall where office space can be leased for a day or for years.
Regus was founded in 1989 and opened its first location in Brussels. It now has more than 340 business centres in 50 countries.
It moved into the United States two years ago and Canada this year and has more than 70 branches in the two countries. In Canada, it has offices in Toronto and Mississauga, Ont., and openings are planned in Vancouver and Montreal.
 |
| Dave Olecko, Business Edge |
| From left, Regus's Calgary centre manager Wes Lenci, CEO for the Americas James Howland and vice-president Tim Cork in Bankers Hall. |
Most of Regus’s customers are global corporations, says James Howland, the company’s CEO for the Americas. Many say Calgary is a place they want to be.
The philosophy behind the Regus centres is flexibility.
Howland says that with flexible, available space, companies can expand or contract without paying for space they don’t use.
Another advantage is familiarity. Regus offices are the same in Toronto or Taipei. That can be important for a global company transferring staff to different locations.
“There is enough complexity in entering a new market without figuring out how to hire staff and get wired in a new city,” Howland said at the official opening of the Calgary centre.
When Howland was an executive with American Express, he found that office space concerns were a “nuisance issue.”
Regus allows the tenant to outsource that work.
The company says that 2.3 per cent of the supply of office space is flexible, but foresees that rising to 20 per cent.
A Calgary developer has agreed to sell Edmonton property to another company.
The Apex Corp. has agreed in principle to sell the Edmonton real estate assets of its Excel Homes Inc. subsidiary to Jayman Master Builder Inc. for $2.2 million.
Apex said the sale will allow Excel to focus on the Calgary market and will let Jayman participate in the starter home market, where Apex will continue to be a supplier of small lots.
Subject to regulatory approval, the deal closes May 1.
Space on 10 floors of an upmarket office tower is up for grabs. It’s in the Dome Tower and has been home to Crestar, which was bought by Gulf, says Oxford Properties Group leasing manager Brad Krizan.
It’s headlease space and includes the 27th to 33rd floors, half of the 23rd and all of the 24th. There are also 18,000 sq. ft. on the 18th floor. The space is efficiently developed and is available Oct. 1.
The Dome Tower is at 7th Avenue and 3rd Street S.W. on the LRT. The building is set back far enough that there’s a view of the mountains between the Canada Trust Tower and Bankers Hall, says Krizan.
Suburban office vacancies rose to 10.4 per cent in the first quarter, up from 9.7 per cent in the last quarter of 2000, says J.J. Barnicke Calgary Ltd.
In the Beltline, the increase was to 8.7 per cent from 6.9 per cent.
Barnicke’s April report on commercial real estate attributes the rise in vacancies partly to the high-tech crunch, offset by demand for space from engineering firms.
In the southeast, 73,000 sq. ft. were added to the office inventory in two projects. In the southwest, Barnicke added CFB West to the survey.
The northeast office market remains active, with vacancies at 10.7 per cent and new projects nearing completion.
Web Watch:
www.oxfordproperties.com
www.apexland.com
www.jjb.com
