Something just happened in Charlotte that hasn’t happened in almost two decades. According to real estate data firm CoStar Group, developers did not break ground on any new office space in the second quarter. That’s the first time since at least 2006, according to available records.
For more, we turn now to Cristina Bolling of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletterfor our segment BizWorthy.
Marshall Terry: OK, Cristina, I know development has been slow recently, but zero square feet of new office space. Really?
Cristina Bolling: I know. It seems incredible, right, Marshall? Developers broke ground on exactly as you said, zero square feet of new office in the second quarter. So what's happening is that companies are really, they're consolidating their office space these days. They're realizing that they don't need as much space as they did before with employees. You know, now they're working from home way more than they did before COVID.
A lot of companies have been asking employees to come back to the office, but they are just not coming back at the levels that they were before. And the other thing that's happened is we've got higher than usual interest rates and there are worries about rents, making lenders hold off on financing.
Terry: Now, up until this point, boosters and office brokers have remained positive about the office market rebounding. But are they beginning to change their tunes?
Bolling: Well, this is an odd time with no new office tower starting construction in the last year, and a lot that were planned are just being delayed. But some people do say that they see things turning around, at least a little bit. We talked to one official at a real estate company called CBRE. He said he senses positive movement in the market with some new leases being signed and he would say that some of that uptick hasn't really been reflected yet in the numbers.
Terry: All right. Well, shifting gears now, the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance is now saying that 113 people are moving to the Charlotte region every day. I've heard a lot of these sorts of figures over the years, so just how accurate is this?
Bolling: Yeah, I mean, people in Charlotte love to talk about how many folks are moving in and out of our region or really moving into our region on any given day.
When you look at this 113 people figure, that are moving to the Charlotte region every day, it is the Charlotte region. It is not just Charlotte, it's a 14-county area that, interestingly, includes Hickory, but not Union County. You know, only a third of that is Mecklenburg County. So more than two-thirds of that growth that we're seeing is taking place outside of Mecklenburg County.
Terry: All right. Well, on to some food news now. A longtime favorite among Charlotteans — Phat Burrito is making a comeback. Now, Cristina, is the actual place coming back, or is it just one of those in-name-only sort of things?
Bolling: Sure, Marshall. So this was an interesting story in the Charlotte Business Journal. If you have been around Charlotte for a while, you know that Phat Burrito is a pretty popular burrito restaurant in South End. It was located where Flower Child is now, if you're familiar with that area.
It closed in February 2017. And now, a guy who has a commercial real estate background has purchased the restaurant's trademark and recipes, and he wants to open Phat Burrito in lower South End. He says he wants to keep the restaurant's original vibe and he's going to be recreating the menu items and things like that. So, you know, whether we'll go and eat a burrito and be transported to 2016 remains to be seen — we'll just have to see.
Terry: Finally, you report a Charlotte production company next month is releasing a horror film called "Heir of the Witch," — that's heir, H-E-I-R — which was shot entirely in Charlotte. Is this going to be the big sleeper hit of the summer?
Bolling: Well, I'm not sure it's going to quite hit the levels of the, you know, "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret." movie that came out earlier this year. You know, it's always fun when Charlotte is on the big screen. I'm not sure how big a pop this movie is going to have. It is kind of interesting. It's been done by a Charlotte-based independent film production company that's called Pasha Entertainment, and it's billed as a psychological horror film about a seamstress who's haunted by her past, so it looks to be kind of interesting. They're going to have a premiere for the movie on Aug. 2 at the Stone Theaters in Redstone — which is a shopping center in Indian Land. So we'll just have to see, Marshall, if this makes it to the Academy Awards next year.
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