WASHINGTON, DC—The US government has made clear on a number of occasions that it will be ruthlessly efficient in its space usage to save money. As it turns out, they meant it.
New efficiency standards have many federal tenants shedding some 15% or more when they execute new leases, according to JLL. It points to the recent example of six federal agencies that announced plans to shift their utilization rates. The new average space utilization across these agencies is 147 RSF per person.
"In general we are seeing GSA lease prospectuses emphasizing efficiency through a number of ways, including better space utilization but also hoteling and telecommuting, JLL's Joe Brennan tells GlobeSt.com.
To meet the new standards for efficiency, JLL also reports, incumbent buildings seeking renewals must reconfigure the entire tenant space instead of giving back excess existing space. Also, this new leasing paradigm favors relocations, as opposed to renewals.
"What we are seeing is consensus being followed by real action," Brennan says. So far most of the activity has been around space reduction but Brennan expects to see the government stepping up efforts for both telecommuting and hoteling.
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