Paula Buffa Paula Buffa

TAMPA, FL—Downtown Tampa is seeing more office leasing traction. Two Harbour Place just inked a 25,246-square-foot office lease.

Cushman & Wakefield senior director Paula Buffa and director Lauren Coup represented landlord Crocker Partners. Equinix, the global interconnection and data center company, renewed its existing 17,188-square-foot office lease and expanded by 8,058 square feet in the tower.

“Two Harbour Place’s modern feature set and prime location make it an ideal fit for Equinix’s mission-critical operations,” Buffa tells GlobeSt.com. The building’s location sets it up to capitalize on Tampa’s Vision Plan, a live-work-play CBD development initiative.

Tampa Bay Lightning owner and downtown land owner Jeffrey Vinik initiated the plan. The $1 billion program calls for nearly 3 million square feet of new waterfront development, all within walking distance of the building.

Two Harbour Place is a 188,456-square-foot, class A office building located on Harbour Island in the Tampa CBD. It is the newest office building in Downtown Tampa and recently underwent a $1 million renovation of its lobby, restrooms, and common areas.

In 2015, employers added about 29,000 positions in the metro, including 6,600 office-using jobs. Last year’s gain of 34,400 positions was fueled by growth in leisure and hospitality, and health care, according to Marcus & Millichap.

Developers completed 550,000 square feet in the market in 2015, encompassing competitive space and more than 270,000 square feet of medical offices. In 2014, 158,000 square feet was finished.

Some industry watchers say the Tampa office market could see new trends. Read my recent column to find out what may be coming down the pike.