Boyle Plans for Sizable Vacancy

Memphis Business Journal

When ServiceMaster makes the move into its new 328,000 -square-foot Belz Enterprises-owned home, an opportunity will open up in the East Memphis office sector. Currently headquartered in two Boyle Investment Company properties on Ridge Lake Boulevard, ServiceMaster will vacate nearly 250,000 square feet of real estate.

“That is a big block of space coming on the market,” says Mark Halperin, executive vice president and chief operating officer for Boyle.  “But, we’ve got a big ramp-up time.  We like our location.  We think it is a prime spot.”

The current average asking rent in the East submarket for all buildings is $19.92 per square foot; for Class A buildings, it’s $26.41.  By comparison, the average asking rent for Downtown office space is $16.95, with Class A space at $19.62.  These numbers come from the first quarter 2016 office market report by Cushman & Wakefield/Commercial Advisors. ServiceMaster’s Ridge Lake buildings are Class B properties, but Halperin calls them Class B “plus” due to Class A features.

From 2015 to 2016, the East Memphis class A submarket has dropped from an available 411,000 square feet to 100,000 square feet.  Of that 100,000 square feet, there are only two spaces capable of accommodating an occupant greater than 10,000 square feet.

While Halperin is unable to go into details due to confidentiality agreements, he did confirm Boyle made several proposals to accommodate ServiceMaster’s need for a bigger footprint.  And, despite not retaining the company as a tenant, Halperin says he is enthusiastic for ServiceMaster, a company he calls a “great customer.”

“We are very excited they are staying in Memphis, and are very pleased for our friends at the Belz organization,” he says.