South Florida's Tech Scene 'Here to Stay' as Uber Joins Cluster of Companies Acquiring Office Space
"In the market, we are witnessing a tipping point as the growing technology sector matures into a true global tech hub," said CBRE's Josh Bank.
Uber Technologies Inc. has become the latest company to migrate to South Florida, which is capturing the attention of major players in the tech industry as they look to occupy office space.
The ridesharing giant signed a lease for a 13,000-square-foot office at 3 MiamiCentral in Downtown Miami. The building is a Class A, mixed-use office tower near the Brightline train service.
3 MiamiCentral is owned by Blackstone, an investment management company based in New York. The JLL team of Alan Kleber and Adam Bernstein represented Uber in the lease transaction, which they said was “yet another example of how the region’s rapidly-growing tech scene is real and here to stay.”
“Upon a thorough evaluation of the local office market, Uber was very intentional in its selection to be in downtown and specifically at 3 MiamiCentral. The building’s close proximity to various mass public transit options met the company’s needs as it aligns with Uber’s mission to improve mobility for its customers and supports its efforts to attract and retain top talent across South Florida. By working closely with Uber, our team was able to secure a premier office space at the Class A building that met its immediate time frame and positions the company in the center of Miami’s thriving urban core,” JLL said in a statement.
South Florida’s diversity sets it apart
Uber’s recent lease is a big deal, according to Josh Bank, managing director at CBRE in Miami. CBRE’s 2021 tech talent report ranked South Florida No. 1 in the country for its diverse tech-degree graduate pool, with 68% of its graduates coming from underrepresented race or ethnicity groups.
That’s great news for tech companies who are looking to hire, according to Bank, who said it could help boost the economy.
“That will help the local colleges and universities, and it should help their enrollment because people will see what’s going on and they’ll get excited, so everything connects. The more capital coming into the region, the more business will be able to hire and schools will be able to enroll. It’s all a good thing,” Bank said. “Our office leasing professionals have reported they’ve never seen so many new-to-market companies looking for space within Miami than right now. It’s quite amazing.”
Last year, 2,770 students graduated with a tech degree, and more than two-thirds of those were considered part of an underrepresented group or ethnicity. Half were Hispanic, 15% were Black, and 3.1% were in the other, non-white or non-Asian categories.
“To me, that makes a lot of sense. We have connections with Latin America and we’re a global city, so we’re not surprised that you have people with a lot of different backgrounds within tech in our metro area,” Bank said. “The diversity could be promoted a little bit better throughout the U.S. within the tech talent sector, but we’re a little bit ahead of the game here in Miami.”
A business-friendly ‘world city’
In addition, South Florida ranks No. 37 for North American tech-talent employment that weathered the COVID-19 pandemic better than most other professions, according to the report.
“One of the reasons we’ve been so resilient is because, within the pandemic, a lot of markets were shut down and we live in a very business-friendly climate down here and a lot of companies moved down here. We’re even seeing that in the restaurant industry. I think a lot of companies move down here because you can enjoy the resources a world city has, but at the same time, it’s less expensive to operate a business, and there’s no state income tax so that gives a little bit of a break. There’s a lot of great incentives,” Bank said.
West Palm Beach is also seeing growth in the office market.
“Granted, it’s not all tech, but tech has been a growing segment. Start-up companies are definitely on the rise too,” said Bank.
When it comes to tech company operating costs, South Florida ranks in the middle. A 500-employee company in a 75,000 square foot space averages $44.2 million in one-year operating costs, which ranks 23 in the top 50 most expensive tech-talent markets.
Bank said he believes South Florida will see more growth as far as tech talent and growth in the office market in the financial, hospitality and tech fields. Tech talent includes professions such as software developers and systems and data managers — across all industries.
It helps that Latin America’s tech talent is also growing rapidly, Bank said.
“Miami is kind of a gateway into Latin America, so I think the connection there makes for an interesting synergy within our tech sector. I think you could even see more growth, especially within the fintech sector, since we have a lot of foreign banks in Miami. There could be an interesting connection there to watch.”
Bank predicts South Florida will continue to gain momentum based on the data in the report.
“In the market, we are witnessing a tipping point as the growing technology sector matures into a true global tech hub. This makes a vibrant ecosystem in which accessing talent is such a critical component,” Bank said.
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