ORLANDO-Dry weather loosens limestone and sand beneath the 12-year-old, four-story, 148,000-sf Southpoint Building in Maitland, FL, causing an exterior wall at the 91%-leased structure to sag and a sidewalk to buckle. Maitland is the second largest office submarket in Central Florida, eight miles north of Downtown.

ORLANDO-Trammell Crow Co. senior associate Jason B. Kaiser says the suburbs have more space, lower rents and newer buildings than the CBD. But Arvida Realty Services' Jeffrey Bloom contends the bulk of the leases this year will be signed Downtown.

ORLANDO-Trammell Crow Co. senior associate Jason B. Kaiser says the suburbs have more space, lower rents and newer buildings than the CBD. But Arvida Realty Services' Jeffrey Bloom contends the bulk of the leases this year will be signed Downtown.

ORLANDO-Charles Schwab Corp.'s current layoff of 300 workers or 20% of its 1,500-person staff at two area locations could dump another 100,000 sf on the class A market, office brokers familiar with the discount brokerage's estimated 303,000-sf operations here tell GlobeSt.com.

ORLANDO-S.O.M. Investors Inc. paid S.O.M. Partners Ltd. $2.86 million for the 11-year-old, 87%-leased, 23,516-sf Shoppes at Maitland in suburban Maitland, FL. The deal is one of the highest per-sf retail transactions this year.

ORLANDO-The locally based, 11-year-old manufacturer of fiber optic lighting products used in office building signage, retail projects and other commercial ventures posted a net profit of $22,118 or one cent per share compared to a loss of $14,661 or a loss of one cent per share in the 2000 period ended March 31.

ORLANDO-Developer/investor Robert I. Kling closed his $15.85 million deal ($60.96 per sf) on the eight-building, 260,000-sf Downtown entertainment landmark May 4. But any planned new look for the property will draw intense scrutiny from the city's Historic Preservation Board.

ORLANDO-Charlotte-based First Union Bank will formally announce next week it will be the anchor tenant, taking at least 100,000 sf in the planned 12-story, 245,000-sf, $50 million building, area brokers familiar with the deal tell GlobeSt.com.