Bidding closed Monday for One American Place, the 24-story high-rise at 301 Main St. downtown.
The class A office tower went on the market earlier this summer. It is unclear how many potential buyers submitted offers yesterday. International real estate firm Avison Young is handling the bidding process and did not return calls seeking comment.
However, Branon Pesnell of Beau Box Commercial Real Estate, who handles leasing for the building, confirms that several bids were submitted.
The 42-year-old One American Place has 333,363 square feet of space and is 85.5% occupied, which is slightly below the average of 90.6% for class A space downtown. Rental rates for the building average $20 per square foot. The average lease rate for class A space downtown is more than $23 per square foot.
One American Place, which received a $2 million facelift in 2003, goes on the market at a time of increasing competition among class A buildings downtown. II City Plaza opened in 2011, adding more than 255,000 square feet to the market, and the 140,600-square-foot IBM building opened last year. Meanwhile, three buildings for the new Water Campus are currently under construction between Nicholson Drive and River Road, just south of downtown.
Several existing downtown tenants will be moving to the new Water Campus buildings when their offices are completed, including the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, which is currently located in Riverside North Tower, and The Water Institute of the Gulf, which leases space in One American Place.
Three years years ago, Kean Miller, which had been one of the largest tenants in One American Place, relocated to II City Plaza.
Still, while older class A properties compete with newer ones, buildings like One American Place are potentially a good investment.
“At the right price it can always be a good investment,” says Wesley Moore, an appraiser with Cook Moore and Associates. “Investors are looking for a market with good upside potential, and downtown has that.”
—Stephanie Riegel
