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SAN DIEGO-Some experts point to softness in the multifamilysector, but office projects have picked up the slack. MetroWork,which broke ground in November, is one of the Downtown officeproperties gaining momentum in the local area.Most recently,SplitRock Group LLC arranged $21.5 million in constructionfinancing for the office condominium project. Lee Spiegelman ofSplitRock Group, on behalf of the developer, Berkson RealtyAdvisors, led the financing effort.At completion, the property willcount 80,000 sf in the projected nine-story building, and will beset in the Little Italy section of town. The project includes 27office condo units that will range from 1,888 sf to 2,752 sf.Howard Berkson of Berkson Realty Advisors says the units will beginin the low $500,000s. He adds that monthly association fees will be"expected to approximate the expense pass-throughs that tenants payas part of their office rent."MetroWork is among a new trend ofoffice condo projects popping up in the Downtown area. Other sitesinclude the four-story Columbia Court building Downtown. The28,233-sf site is a development of San Diego-based Pacifica Cos.Another project is the T.R. Produce warehouse near Petco Park.Cruzan-Monroe is converting the property into 28 officeunits.Berkson says this trend of office condo projects is followingthe lead of similar projects in Manhattan and Silicon Valley. "Theattributes of office ownership resemble those of home ownership,"Berkson says. "Purchase of the office condo enables the businessowner to gain long-term control over his workspace expenditures,realize certain tax benefits as well as an appreciating asset."