Normally in commercial real estate districts, especially in high street retail, there are multiple owners on a street competing for tenants.
Covid has stripped down our competitive nature, at least temporarily, and opened a dialogue about how we can help each other get to the other side of the recovery. Reaching out to your neighbors and offering to help can uncover new solutions to meet mutual objectives.
With our Venice building, I’ve gotten to know almost every single one of the 12 or so surrounding owners on the street. We’ve shared tenant leads with one another and we’ve spoken openly about how to keep each other’s spaces leased and activated. In retail districts, the street really benefits collaboration between owners to drive foot traffic. People want to live where things are happening. If one building becomes vacant this can soon snowball and impact everybody.
This triggered the Alfresco dining program, which is the city of LAs program for outdoor dining, where we now have a plaza of amazing food places and coffee shops all happening just a stone’s throw from the beach.
You will not be at a disadvantage from speaking to your neighbors right now about ways to collaborate during these times. One plus one could equal three.