The Verdict is Still Out, but Flight to Quality & Experience Might Be Working

In a August 22,, 2024 Bisnow article quality office space is now table stakes and to win landlords are shooting for ‘flight to experience.” “It’s really about that experience you feel as you walk in,” Harvest Properties Senior Director of Development Danielle Friend said at the Grand Hyatt San Francisco during Bisnow’s State of the Bay Area Office Market event. “We want it to feel like a hotel lobby. We want it to feel activated, so we are going to add a coffee bar we will operate. It’s going to be very cool with bespoke wood, grass and high-end finishes. We’re going to have a lot more seating than typical lobbies.” As an example, general contractor WCI Out of Walnut Creek stated about office renovations  “We’ve done five or six floors in the East Bay recently, and 75% to 80% of those floors are now fully leased,” Vice President Synder said. “Landlords are getting creative with their additions, including podcasting studios, indoor gardens, arcades and golf simulators to serve as a draw to tenants and their workers. Landlords are also going big on gaming and fitness.  Weight training machines and high-intensity training or spin classes have taken the place of the ordinary office gym and their run-down treadmills. And, of course, there has been a surge in pickleball courts as an office amenity as the sport has risen in popularity. “Last year, if you had a pickleball court, your building was leased.”