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Page 20 - April 5-18, 2017 Colorado Real Estate Journal
Boulder County & U.S. 36 Corridor
by Jill Jamieson-Nichols
Companies are looking
toward the U.S. Highway 36
corridor to attract and retain
employees in the technology
sector, and as density increases,
so too will investor interest.
“I think one of the things
that investors are predicting,
and its time has really come, is
that the 36 corridor is going to
be the recipient of a good deal
of new requirements because
companies have to locate near
the employee,” John Jugl, vice
chairman of Western Regional
Capital Markets for Newmark
Grubb Knight Frank, said at
NAIOP Colorado’s March
15 breakfast meeting. “Your
employment base really does
open up on that 36 corridor.
You touch more people, and
it’s easier to recruit.”
“Attracting tech people is
really important to us,” said
Michael Slubowski, president
and CEO of SCL Health, which
began moving to Interlocken
Advanced Technology Envi-
ronment several years ago and
today has 1,100 employees
under a single roof. “Back in
2008, when we originally locat-
ed on the Oracle campus, there
was a fair amount of vacant
space. It’s just the opposite
now.”
Swisslog Healthcare Solu-
tions plans to move from Den-
ver to Broomfield to attract
tech employees and said its
retention has improved since
employees learned of its plans.
“Our turnover was in the high
teens, and it’s almost nonex-
istent with the anticipation of
going that way,” said Roger
Horton, the company’s vice
president of technology.
Impetus for companies locat-
ing on the corridor, midway
between Denver and Boulder,
include easy access to Denver
International Airport and, as
has been the case for many
years, a lack of large, flexible
spaces in Boulder.
“We think of it as the catch-
er’s mitt mentality,” said Derek
Conn, executive vice president
and partner at Etkin Johnson
Real Estate Partners, which
has nearly 2 million square
feet of product on the High-
way 36 corridor, much of it
industrial/flex product in the
Colorado Tech Center in Lou-
isville. “As tenants grow out of
Boulder, they are oftentimes in
two to three different locations
in Boulder, and we are able
to offer efficiencies in Class
A buildings that Boulder just
doesn’t have,” Conn said, add-
ing the CTC location enables
lifestyle brands and others to
retain their Boulder County
identity.
“The city of Boulder has gone
through the biggest construc-
tion cycle in its history and it
hasn’t delivered any buildings,”
noted Jugl, who added that
most new construction in Boul-
der has been redevelopment of
existing buildings, which adds
little inventory.
“It’s interesting because a lot
of these R&D buildings are com-
panies that are making things.
They’re not just social network-
ing companies … When you
look at a company that’s mak-
ing something in Boulder and
needs 18-, 22-foot clear (ceiling
height), racking and dock-high
(loading), those companies are
going either to Longmont or
they’re going down the corri-
dor. I actually think that a lot of
the opportunity is going to be in
the R&D space because I think
there’s a great value proposition
on a cash-on-cash basis, and
there’s a whole group of com-
panies that are really doing very
well that are just being forced
out,” he said.
One of the issues communi-
ties along the corridor face is,
“We’re seeing greater pressure
for greater diversity of housing
choices,” said Westminster Eco-
nomic Development Director
John Hall, who moderated the
NAIOP Colorado discussion.
Condominium construction,
stifled by Colorado’s construc-
tion defects laws, would help,
agreed Slubowski. Although
“relatively” more affordable
than Boulder or “some places
in Douglas County,” he said,
housing affordability “definite-
ly is an area where we see some
challenges in attracting talent.”
Boulder’s traffic and growth
issues, high housing prices,
along with a tapping out of
tech talent, notably by Google,
all are making U.S. 36, which
is easier for employees to get
to, more of an “infill” location,
said Jugl.
“Generally speaking, inves-
tors are looking for the 36 cor-
ridor to pick up, but it’s going
to be the densification of the 36
corridor that’s going to attract
more and more capital, because
that’s what they’re looking for
elsewhere,” he said.
Arista, Downtown Westmin-
ster (the redevelopment of the
old Westminster Mall) and
Superior Town Center all are
bringing dense, urban develop-
ment to the corridor.
The 36 corridor also has a
wealth of newer office build-
ings – 82 percent of them were
built after 1990, according to
Jugl.
“One of the things that inves-
tors like about the 36 corridor
is the newness of the product.
It has some of the best build-
ings within Colorado and the
Front Range,” he said. s
‘It’s interesting because a lot of these R&D
buildings are companies that are making
things. They’re not just social networking
companies …When you look at a company
that’s making something in Boulder and
needs 18-, 22-foot clear (ceiling height),
racking and dock-high (loading), those
companies are going either to Longmont or
they’re going down the corridor.’
– John Jugl, Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
by Jill Jamieson-Nichols
Swisslog Healthcare Solu-
tions is preparing to move
its North American head-
quarters from Denver to
Broomfield.
The company reportedly is
working with United Prop-
erties to develop an approx-
imately 56,000-square-foot
building at Interpark, locat-
ed at West 112th Avenue
and Main Street. It hopes to
double in size over the next
five years.
Part of global robotics
company KUKA, Swisslog
Healthcare Solutions focus-
es on logistics automation
for hospitals and medical
facilities – pneumatic tube
systems, and systems for
storing and retrieving medi-
cal supplies and pharma-
ceuticals, for instance. Tra-
ditionally a hardware com-
pany, it is shifting more into
software, according to Roger
Horton, vice president of
technology.
Horton, who spoke at a
recent NAIOP Colorado
breakfast meeting high-
lighting the U.S. Highway
36 corridor, said flexibility
to grow, and attracting and
retaining tech talent were
big drivers behind the antic-
ipated relocation.
“Attracting talent in a
50-year-old building in
the old Stapleton has been
very difficult. We knew we
needed to relocate,” he said,
adding retention already
has improved since employ-
ees learned of the pending
move.
The company considered
other locations in the metro
area and favored Broomfield
based on commuting options
for employees, proximity to
universities and easy access
to Denver International Air-
port. It would have preferred
to be on light rail; however,
land prices at transit-orient-
ed development sites are
higher than what Swisslog
was willing to commit to, he
said. The Broomfield location
is a half-mile from bus/bus
rapid transit for employees
wanting to use public trans-
portation. s
by Jill Jamieson-Nichols
Beau Jo’s Pizza will put
its own spin on a restaurant
building in Longmont.
The Colorado pizza res-
taurant chain bought the for-
mer Johnny Carino’s build-
ing at 2033 Ken Pratt Blvd.
from Boulder County owner/
developer David Chaknova
for $2.6 million.
“Beau Jo’s is working on
some fabulous plans to re-cre-
ate the bar area and create an
exciting indoor/outdoor patio
bar experience,” said Chakno-
va of Nova Investments Inc.
The company also is focused
on sustainability, and is a big
user of wind and solar energy,
which no doubt will play into
its plans.
Johnny Carino’s closed the
7,000-square-foot Longmont
restaurant in 2014. Chaknova
bought the building in 2015
and has spent the last 1½ years
discussing the location with
local and regional restaurant
groups. He thinks Beau Jo’s is
a great fit for the building.
“(For) many years I have
stopped in their Idaho Springs
location, coming to and from
the mountains off I-70, and
always thought how great
their food and atmosphere
was and how they would
excel in Longmont,” said
Chaknova. “Then in meeting
owner Chip Bair in 2016 and
understanding how focused
he is with the environment
and helping the community, I
realized this would be a per-
fect fit for Longmont.”
The Longmont restaurant
will have private rooms to
accommodate sports ban-
quets, wedding rehearsal din-
ners and holiday parties, for
instance.
The restaurant will open
this summer. s
‘Beau Jo’s is working
on some fabulous
plans to re-create the
bar area and create
an exciting indoor/
outdoor patio bar
experience.’
– David Chaknova, Nova
Investments Inc.
Beau Jo’s Pizza will occupy the former Johnny Carino’s restaurant at 2033 Ken Pratt Blvd. in Longmont.