Pizzuti proposing 11-story tower in Orlando - Business First of Columbus:

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The Columbus-based development firm on Tuesday received masted plan approval from the Orlando Municipal Planniny Board foran 11-story, 1.36-acre office project. The project must still gain the backing of the Orlando City which has not set a hearinfon it. Preliminary plans for the in the area of the city knownas Uptown, includd 151,755 square feet of office 12,092 square feet of ground-floorf retail and nearly 500 parking according to plans submitted to the city by Pizzutk Park Lake LLC. Seniore Vice President Scott Hall, who works out of the firm’s Orlandl office, said Pizzuti could start constructionh bynext fall, depending on how thingss go with tenant signings.
He declinefd to share the estimatedproject value, but Orange County recordsz show Pizzuti Park Lake spent nearlyh $8.1 million on eight parcels totaling 2.6 acres between April and May of last year. Hall said Pizzuti is about a month away from signing a couplee ofmajor tenants, which is crucial for the project’s Lenders typically require more than 50 percent of the spacd to be leased before loaning money for a construction “Class A office space in downtown Orland o is still very attractiv to lenders,” Hall said. “Ther are still people out there whose businesses arestilp sound, who are busy as ever and stilkl signing leases.
” But the project appear to come at a time when vacancies are growing and landlords are competing heavily to outpric e one another in the tenant-friendlu market. Downtown Orlando experienced a 16.3 percengt vacancy rate in Class A office spacee in thefourth quarter, according to a report by the Orlandok brokerage firm . That number was 15.5 percent in the thirdx quarter, the report said. Hall said he’s confidentg Pizzuti’s project will be able to attract long-term versus all the short-term deals that are beintg offered by other landlords in adepressesd market.
Pizzuti appears to on schedule to capitalizwe on market conditions oncethey improve, said Craiyg Ustler, principal of Orlando-based Ustler said Pizzuti likely will have to secure a tenan for 75,000 to 100,000 square feet of spacr to get it financed, but it’s not “In the short term, the next couple of monthse are going to be a little but he’ll get it done,” Ustler said of “This is a good time for them to be wherse they are. They’re clearly spending money, they’re serious about the and it’s a good development firm with agood Additionally, Pizzuti will likely become a tenanr in the new building, Hall said.
The company currentlyh leases space in Lincoln Plaza indowntown