Fairfield County Business Journal 072318

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MAKING WAVES

SPECIAL REPORT

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JULY 23, 2018 | VOL. 54, No. 30

YOUR ONLY SOURCE FOR REGIONAL BUSINESS NEWS

westfaironline.com

Bridgeport’s Harbor Yard Amphitheater breaks ground; issues remain

Uncovering the past page 4

BY KEVIN ZIMMERMAN kzimmerman@westfairinc.com

W Maisa Tisdale, president and CEO of the Mary and Eliza Freeman Center for History and Community, says that the history of Little Liberia in Bridgeport has been hidden for too many years. Photo by Phil Hall.

Fairfield County Q2 office market: Healthy demand, but vacancies persist

BY PHIL HALL phall@westfairinc.com

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airfield County’s office market was a mostly positive environment during the second quarter of the year. The leasing activity level reached 403,000 square feet while renewals covered 146,000 square feet, according to data from CBRE. That brings the midyear total to more than 1 million square feet, which is the strongest midyear activity in three years. CBRE also determined that the region’s overall availability remained flat on a quarter-over-quarter basis, sitting at 24 percent. One dramatic statistic involved the Greenwich central business district’s (CBD) 9.6 percent availability level, which marked

the first time in 10 years that the level fell into the single-digit realm. According to a data report from RHYS, Fairfield County’s overall vacancy rate decreased by 0.3 percentage points during the second quarter to finish at 15.6 percent. Of the region’s five submarkets, Greenwich had the biggest quarterly decline with a 2.1 percent drop to a 14.5 percent vacancy rate. The Northern Submarket had the lowest vacancy rate at 6.1 percent, a slight increase from the first quarter. RHYS also found that Fairfield County recorded a positive net absorption for the first time since the third quarter of 2016, at 162,428 square feet. Greenwich had the highest net absorption of the » OFFICE MARKET

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ith its delayed groundbreaking finally taking place on July 12, it’s smooth sailing ahead for Bridgeport’s Harbor Yard Amphitheater. Or is it? The $15 million project, originally scheduled to open next spring, is now looking at a summer 2019 debut, according to Harbor Yard principal Howard Saffan — and that depends on whether or not the area has to endure another harsh winter, he said. Declaring the amphitheater “part of the renaissance of Bridgeport,” Saffan said plans are for the end result to be “iconic. It’s going to be 120 feet high — 12 stories — which is 50 percent higher than the (next-door Webster Bank) arena.” How the 10,000-seat arena will be affected by the 5,500-seat amphitheater being right next door has been a bone of contention, as some observers have questioned the wisdom behind having two concert venues within walking distance of each other. Saffan said that he hoped to “work collaboratively with the arena to create an entertainment district.” “We hope the city will be put on the map with the amphitheater,” added Jim Koplik, president of concert promoter Live Nation Connecticut and Upstate New York. “And we » BRIDGEPORT

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