1736 Magazine - Fall 2018
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
Parker Dye, with Jordan Trotter Commercial Real Estate, stands<br />
on the 6th floor of the SunTrust Building.<br />
PHOTO BY MICHAEL HOLAHAN<br />
New Life for<br />
Old Offices<br />
Demand for ‘open-office’ space<br />
could revitalize older buildings<br />
By Damon Cline<br />
The future of professional space in<br />
downtown Augusta is wide-open –<br />
as in “wide-open” offices.<br />
The open-office concept that<br />
has become the norm in larger<br />
markets, particularly among companies employing<br />
large numbers of millennials, is driving<br />
owners of downtown buildings to bring their<br />
decades-old properties into the 21st century.<br />
The owners of Broad Street’s two largest office<br />
buildings – 699 Broad St. and the SunTrust<br />
Building at 801 Broad St. – are renovating previously<br />
compartmentalized suites for what they<br />
hope will be a slew of companies attracted to<br />
Augusta’s growing tech sector.<br />
Davis BemanBlanchard and<br />
Calhoun Vice President<br />
Interior walls and hallways are being knocked<br />
down to give workers more natural light and<br />
better views of the urban core. The functional-but-bland<br />
drop ceilings are getting ripped out<br />
to expose architectural details and create additional<br />
spaciousness.<br />
“That is what everybody is looking for,” said<br />
Parker Dye, an agent with Jordan Trotter Commercial<br />
Real Estate who specializes in marketing<br />
downtown properties, including the SunTrust<br />
building. “The more walls you create, the more<br />
you’re limiting a potential tenant.”<br />
Renovations at the 48-year-old building began<br />
in early 2017, shortly after the for the 11-story,<br />
135,000-square-foot building was purchased<br />
PHOTO BY DAMON CLINE<br />
<strong>1736</strong>magazine.com u 65
Change language