Considerations For Retail Space In An Office Building

A successful relationship between an office building owner and retail tenant usually involves educating each party to the particular attributes of the other party's business. For example, a retail tenant typically has little or no appreciation of the following office building concepts that are normally inapplicable to a single story shopping center or mall:

• Limited availability of parking for employees and customers, usually confined to a parking garage and often involving parking charges. Depending on the relative bargaining positions of the parties, the landlord may need to provide parking validation for up to two hours of parking by tenant's customers.
• Imposition of hourly charges for use of the building's chilled water loop during non-business hours of the building. Business hours for the retailer are often greater than business hours of the building, particularly in an urban environment where there is direct access between the retail space and the street