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NAIOP Member Call to Action Regarding Rent Control

NAIOPWA is a member of the Partnership for Affordable Housing. We are committed to policies that increase housing creation, access, and affordability. Legislators are considering a rent control bill that would have grave consequences for housing creation and long-term access to affordable housing. SB 5139 would impose the strictest rent control in the nation.

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Washington State Legislature 2021 Report – Week 1

NAIOPWA's state lobbyist, Greg Hanon, brings years of experience to his role supporting commercial real estate and the business environment in our region. While his work goes well beyond legislative session coverage and seasonal advocacy efforts, January through March (and sometimes longer) is a fast-moving period where experience and energy make a big impact. Each week, Greg sends reports for NAIOPWA members through our Government Affairs committee, which are posted in our app and online in this members-only blog space. The reports include a brief overview of session activity and highlights of the most pertinent issues for our industry. Additionally, Greg includes a complete list of bills and hearings that inform how we do business in Washington State. You'll see a link to download that list at the end of each short weekly update.

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Industry Update: Exponential COVID-19 Case Growth Necessitates Stringent Protocol Adherence

 

Yesterday’s press conference with Governor Jay Inslee, medical professionals, and other leaders from our region brought a message none of us wanted to hear, and that we can’t afford to ignore: COVID cases are on an exponential increase curve. November 15 was the most dangerous public health day in over 100 years in our state, according to the governor, with no signs of today being any better. In Seattle, 20% of all COVID cases have occurred in the past 2 weeks, said Mayor Jenny Durkan. And the numbers aren’t better elsewhere in the state or across the country.

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Congratulations 2020 Night of the Stars Winners and Finalists!

Honoring Excellence: NAIOPWA’s Night of the Stars 2020 

Honorees showcase the best regional commercial real estate development in 2020 with an emphasis on creative multifamily mixed-use, sustainability and last-mile delivery 

SEATTLE – At today’s first-ever virtual NAIOPWA Night of the Stars, the commercial real estate community honored the year’s most innovative, creative and inspiring CRE projects in Washington state. Completed between July 1, 2019, and August 1, 2020, these projects particularly demonstrate the flexibility and strength of the local CRE industry in the face of a global pandemic. 

The 2020 winners and finalists reflect major shifts in our region toward affordable, multifamily housing that creatively supports communities, as well as the rapid increase in industrial real estate supporting last-mile delivery. This year, as always, judges used a rubric to evaluate and score projects according to defined criteria and made category adjustments reflecting the unique nature of projects, such as dividing industrial projects into those built on spec and those built to suit. This year, too, the full immersion of sustainable practices in the region’s development projects lead to multiple honorees in different market categories. 

NAIOPWA's Night of the Stars identifies outstanding real estate developments and activities in a variety of market types and the individuals who made the projects happen. The awards aim to honor the teams who build our landscape in this annual celebration of the industry. Each finalist project was evaluated for impact on the community, market adaptability, ingenuity and local contributions. 



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NAIOPWA Advocacy Update: Expedited Voluntary Cleanup Program

Update & Summary for August 3, 2020: 
The WA Dept. of Ecology's new Expedited VCP, launched on July 1, 2020, is a self-sustaining process with dedicated staff to respond quickly to the needs of developers working under compressed schedules. The time to get through the expedited VCP could be as short as 4 months compared to 18 months (or more) under the regular VCP. The new program also allows moving sites in the regular VCP to the Expedited VCP as long as certain requirements are met.

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NAIOPWA Flash Poll Results: As Tenants Struggle, Property Owners Reach Out in Support 

NAIOPWA flash poll banner with woman in office wearing medical mask and looking at phone

Poll Results: As Tenants Struggle, Property Owners Reach Out in Support 
"We will do what it takes for the tenants to survive. Their success is our success."

SEATTLE - On April 16 and 17, NAIOPWA circulated our first “flash poll” to the region’s commercial real estate community, including members and the community at large. Over two days, 54 professionals representing property owners and developers responded to the survey, providing 119 total responses across seven asset types: office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hospitality, mixed-use, and healthcare. 

Poll results represent a snapshot of the current state of the industry, which relies on a diverse business environment that abruptly narrowed in early March. As we might expect, rent/lease payments were down in April and are expected to drop further next month. But regional CRE owners and property managers are clearly united in creative and proactive solutions to keep tenants in their properties.


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Executive Order: Construction Guidance Released on Washington State's "Stay Home, Stay Safe" Order

NAIOP, along with AGC, requested clarification on Governor Inslee's recent “Stay Home, Stay Safe” executive order as it relates to construction activities. The newly released Construction Guidance Memo is online.

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NAIOPWA Requests Extension on Implementation of State Construction Code | MFTE Task Force

graphic with NAIOPWA logo and COVID 19 response in text on blue textured background

In support of our 1,000+ association members, the commercial real estate business industry and the community at large, NAIOP Washington State has submitted an official request to Governor Jay Inslee and to the State Building Code Council requesting a 6-month delay in implementation of new building codes, to January 1, 2021.

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Disaster Resiliency in the PNW

One critical aspect of sustainability is resiliency, or how we bounce back from natural disasters. A little preparation can go a long way—but a lack of forethought can quickly lead to very difficult situations throughout a city or region. Remember the 2015 New Yorker article about the next big Cascadia earthquake? When the article was published, it prompted seemingly endless, yet interesting, discussions about the inevitability of a very large earthquake in the region, as well as dozens of follow-up stories giving advice on how to prepare. 

Fast-forward four years to Seattle Snowmaggedon 2019. Did you have a week’s supply of food and water in your home when the snow fell last February? Conditions weren’t anywhere near as bad as the name suggests, but empty grocery store shelves made a deep impression, whether you saw them in person like I did or on social media or the news. Those empty-shelf encounters were a fairly common experience. The takeaway is that there is only a few days’ food supply in our grocery stores, which is quickly exacerbated by disaster-inspired hoarding behavior and the breakdown of efficient but lean supply chains.

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Opportunity Zones [February 2019 Breakfast Recap]

Stack of three photos showing speakers, audience at February NAIOPWA breakfastWednesday’s meeting started with the passing of the gavel and official induction of Scott Mathews as the 2019 President of NAIOP Washington State. Scott is the Senior Director, Acquisitions & Residential Development, for Vulcan, Inc. Much gratitude was given to Tony Toppenberg of Turner Construction Company for his service this past year.

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The Confluence of Real Estate Capital with Technology [June Breakfast Recap]

all speakersOn Wednesday, NAIOP WA State interacted with a panel from CrowdStreet, Inc., their sponsors Scanlan Kemper Bard and SMARTCAP, and Stoel Rives LLP about online real estate investment, which is experiencing exponential growth. The online investment market allows for a diversity in investment profiles, potentially higher gains, and an increase of available analytical data. Molly Moore, CMO from CrowdStreet, moderated the panel where they talked online investment and legal implications and regulations.

Mary P. Hull, a Partner at Stoel Rives LLP, gave a brief introduction on the legal landscape explaining whether it is legal to raise capital for commercial real estate online (yes), and going over the ins and outs of the Jobs Act 2012, Angel List of 2010, and general securities laws such as Rule 506(b) and 506(c).

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Emerging Markets in the Puget Sound Region [May Breakfast Recap]

three men hold an oversized checkOn Wednesday morning, we heard from Seattle’s neighboring cities that are emerging markets in our area (and don’t have a head tax!).

Before the program started, there was a recap on the Spring Property Tour and a Fred Hutchison representative gave their appreciation to everyone that came out earlier in the month. NAIOP WA State then presented a generous donation for $4,000 to the cancer research study organization.

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Battle of the Economists [March 2018 Breakfast Recap]

April breakfast panel A “battle royale” was held at the NAIOP Breakfast Meeting on March 21, also known as a lively and illuminating discussion with two premier economists from our area.

President Tony Toppenberg began the meeting by showing even more features from the NAIOP WA app. It really does have some great features including the presenters’ slides for each breakfast meeting, downloadable for one month after each event. New members were introduced and we heard the sad news that Sharlyn Turner of Peterson and Sullivan passed away.

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Capital Markets 2018 [February 2018 Breakfast Recap]

men on stage at a presentationDespite the cold weather, NAIOP Washington State members and supporters came in full force on Wednesday, February 28, to learn more about capital market trends in our region and what they mean for the future.

Mike Wood of NBS Financial Services moderated the panel and the Q&A discussion following. He kicked the event off with a confident and positive summation of real estate investments in the region.

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Report: Commercial Real Estate in Washington State Supported 56,617 Jobs and $8.8 Billion of GDP in 2017 [Press Release]

SEATTLE – The NAIOP Research Foundation has released the NAIOP Economic Impacts of Commercial Real Estate report (2018 Edition). The report is conducted for purposes of estimating the annual economic contribution of commercial real estate development to the U.S. economy.

Development and construction of new commercial real estate in the United States – office, industrial, warehouse and retail – generates significant economic growth at the state and national levels. This annual study, “The Economic Impacts of Commercial Real Estate,” published by the NAIOP Research Foundation, measures the contribution to GDP, salaries and wages generated and jobs supported from the development and operations of commercial real estate.

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Tourism & Hospitality Trends & Forecast [December 2017 Breakfast Recap]

December panelists at eventNAIOP WA members and guests gathered last Wednesday morning to learn about tourism and hospitality in our region. Before the panel started, attendees were treated to a video montage from September’s Community Enhancement event at Farmer Frog, a sustainable, educational farm in Woodinville.

NAIOP Washington state outgoing president Kristin Jensen introduced the morning’s breakfast topic. The hospitality and tourism sector is growing in Seattle and the Puget Sound. The panel discussed the factors making that a reality, including exponential population growth, and what the 58 cranes dotting the Seattle skyline mean for the future of the industry.

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Budget Stalemate in Olympia: Possible tax increases that impact the commercial real estate industry

The 2017 session of the Washington State Legislature is now in its second 30-day special session in order to find agreement on the level and sources of funding for the McCleary decision to fully fund K-12 education. The legislature is expected to reach agreement by the end of the special session on June 21, or by June 30, the final day of the current biennium.

The Washington Supreme Court ruled in McCleary that school districts’ reliance on local levies, and the ability of local communities to pay for those levies, varied dramatically around the state and resulted in inequitable funding of K-12 education. The legislature’s challenge has been to equitably fund education statewide.

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Solving Our Region's Homelessness Problem [May 2017 Breakfast Recap]

This was a tough one! We have participated in and to a large extent driven the tremendous real estate expansion in Seattle and that’s a good thing! However, there can be unintended consequences and in our May Breakfast we explored one of those consequences: Homelessness. The Breakfast was sponsored by Lake Union Partners, Runberg Architecture Group, and Rushing. We sincerely thank them for their continued support.

President Kristin Jensen related information about the annual NAIOP Washington State PAC fundraiser on June 28. She also welcomed our new members. We heard about the Summer Social on August 14 at The Golf Club at Newcastle and received a presentation on the 2017 Real Estate Challenge, which was held in British Columbia.

Richard Kendall, General Manager, Allison+Partners moderated our panel which included:

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Economic Impact of Commercial Real Estate in Washington State [NAIOP News]

Report: Commercial Real Estate in Washington State Supported 43,130 Jobs and $6.3 Billion of GDP in 2016

SEATTLE – In late February, the NAIOP Research Foundation released the NAIOP Economic Impacts of Commercial Real Estate report (2017 Edition). The report is conducted for purposes of estimating the annual economic contribution of commercial real estate development to the U.S. economy. 

National highlights from the 2017 report include:

  • Commercial real estate development supported 6.3* million American jobs in 2016 (a measure of both new and existing jobs).
  • Commercial real estate development contributed $465 billion to the GDP* in 2016.
  • There were 410.1 million square feet of commercial real estate space built in 2016, with capacity to house 1.1 million new workers.

Locally, 2016 economic impacts in Washington State included: 

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