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Lower rents spurring interest
As Leesburg's commercial rent prices decline, the town's dining options appear to be on the rise.Four new eateries are either open or about to open in previously vacant space in Leesburg's downtown core.
One, the Wine Kitchen on South King Street, debuted in November. Three more – a hot dog eatery on South King Street, a Mediterranean-style restaurant on West Market Street and a Cajun-themed restaurant on Loudoun Street – will open this spring.
“I'm bullish on Leesburg,” said Don Devine, who owns about two dozen properties in town, including three recently leased to eateries. “If you have restaurants, you will have retail.”
In 2008, “for lease” signs easily outpaced “opening soon” signs throughout the town's historic district.
Lately, though, some brokers and building owners said they are seeing a slight rise in interest in their available space as lower rent prices are enticing more entrepreneurs to town.
“Clearly, what you have are landlords being responsive to the lean conditions,” said Bob White, president of Landmark Commercial Real Estate, which represents at least a dozen properties in downtown. “There is some softening in rents.”
Though prices differ largely by type of space, in downtown they are generally hovering around $20 a square foot, down from about $25 a year ago.
Aside from lowering rents, building owners, according to Jim Sisley, principal broker at Leesburg's Paladin Real Estate, are also more willing to fix up their properties. A few are even making green upgrades, something, he said, many tenants are now looking for.
“Owners are trying to make their properties as attractive as possible,” he said.
Devine, one of the biggest players in Leesburg's commercial market, said he's decreased rents at some of his properties by as much as 20 percent to lure tenants. He's also frozen escalations to the consumer price index commonly built into commercial leases.
Signing restaurants as tenants, Devine said, will help enliven downtown. If potential retailers notice more people visiting Leesburg restaurants, he said, they may feel more confident to sign leases as well.
“This all fits into my long-range plans,” he said.
Contact the reporter at jjacks@timespapers.com
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