Deerwood Clinches 60,000-SF Tenant, Breaks Ground

Main Street America Group, a Keene, NH-based property and casualty insurance provider, will be taking 60,000 sf or 53% of the structure when it moves its growing corporate staff into the quarters in January 2004. The company plans to move 28 executives into the new space by the end of 2003 and another 40 by the end of 2004.

When completed, Deerwood North will comprise four buildings totaling 511,000 sf. "We designed and permitted Deerwood North 300 in the hopes of attracting an anchor tenant," says Flagler president G. John Carey.

Carey says the lease is long term but didn't disclose its length or value, nor the construction cost of the new building. However, area brokers and local construction industry estimators familiar with the Deerwood North submarket, tell GlobeSt.com the lease is probably for 10 years at an estimated average rent of $20 per sf, or an estimated aggregate rent of $12 million. The estimated hard cost of Deerwood North 300 is $150 per sf or an estimated $17 million.

The move for the MSA Group means the firm will be near another company subsidiary, Old Dominion Insurance Co., which has been operating in Jacksonville with a staff of 60.

Jacksonville-based Haskell Co. is the general contractor at Deerwood North 300. The consulting architects are locally based Roland, Delvalle and Bradley. Gary Cox of Advantis Real Estate Services Co. negotiated the lease for Flagler. Lou Nutter of CB Richard Ellis Inc. represented the MSA Group.