Asa Jay's weblog

Yesterday I heard from Chad Carper regarding the space next to Dominos Pizza in Airway Heights.  After several attempts to contact the representatives at Tomlinson Black Commercial, I found that Chad’s name, with Kiemle & Hagood, was recently posted on the property.  I called Chad and left a message last week, and he promptly called me back once he was back in town on Monday.   Chad’s number is 755-7572.
Chad is actually the person who found the land and helped a developer build the location.  The developer then sold it to another owner, and that owner is now trying to sell the property as well.  The current price is set at $1.3M.  That’s a bit more than I want to spend, I’m more interested in leasing a the moment which is what we talked about first.
The current space available is 3000 sq. ft. which can be divided into two spaces.  Chad told me there were no specific plans, so the space could be used as one large area, or could be leased anywhere between 1200 and 1800 sq. ft.  This location out of all the others so far, gives me the most options.  The old Premier Video was 3700 sq. ft. but there was no option to divide it. The spaces at Hayford Rd. were all pre-set, but had a varying degree of sizes.  This spot allows me the flexibility to choose something within the area my floor planning is coming up with.

The space is approximately 70 feet deep, so if I’m interested in this space I can massage my floor plans appropriately.  There are two restrooms currently installed, one for each of two space the 3000 sq. ft. can be divided into.  The lease price is $15.75 per sq. ft. per year, with $2.50 per sq. ft. triple net (taxes, insurance and common area maintenance).
There are no remodelling restrictions as long as they are approved by the building owner.  I was told I could put in a deli and a coffee bar if I wanted.  Chad mentioned I might not want to put in a grill since it would be very costly to install an overhead hood vent system.  I’ll have to keep that in mind.

As for the term, Chad said they ae negotiable, right up front.  There was no talk about a five year lease being mandatory or even preferred.  In fact, Chad told me the owners were open to providing the first three or four months FREE with the signing of a three or five year lease.   This was by far the most flexible a plan I have been approached with yet and Chad seemed very calm and open about what we could do to get my business into the building.

I must say I had the best conversation with Chad out of any of the other people I’ve talked to regarding space.  He also complimented me on my forethought of questions to ask, at one point believing I already owned or was leasing other properties.  That tells me I’ve begun to understand many of the things I need to know when it come to leasing a place.

Well, in the end, this spot falls in the mid-range of leasing cost per square foot.  However, it also has the most flexible arrangement of features so far, between space and leasing terms.  The only drawback right now is the parking available.  There are only two non-handicap spots out front, along with two handicap spots.  There is however a 17 space lot out back that was put in as part of the construction.  That just means I might need to use the back door as a valid customer entrance.  Overall, I’m really liking this spot more than any other right now.

Another thing to think about is that this space would be a good “starter” space and location.  If the business was successful and needed to grow, I could possibly expand it into the remaining space (if not leased at the time), or even move into something larger in a different location.

I was on the phone with Chad for a little over 20 minutes.  Today I need to study for a mid-term I’m taking tonight so I won’t get to the spreadsheet today, but I have enough info on leasing and locations that I can build something now.  I’ll have to work on that tomorrow.

The last option I wanted to get information on, was the idea of buying land and building.  I know that would be the greater expense so it’s probably not the best idea, but one I think I should get information on anyway.

That’s all for now.

Asa Jay

Today I was successful in contacting Vandervelt Construction to get lease informaiton on properties recently built on the Northeast corner of Hayford Rd. and Hwy 2. I talked with Jason Strain who was a very nice and patient gentleman and helped answer a lot of extra questions. The phone number I called was 467-6654 and the receptionsist forwarded me to Jason. Jason told me he does not have a direct number.

There are currently four spaces open for lease, 1178, 1229, 1448 and 1620 square feet respectively. Each leases for $18 a square foot, per year. The triple net is currently estimated at $3.25 a square foot. Again, they require a five year lease which would be increased by 12.5% in the next five year renewal. As I talked with Jason about other terms, he mentioned he was not sure, but thought the banking arrangment they had with their lender required them to lease at five year intervals. He did mention he though maybe a three year lease could be negotiated. He did not come across with any kind of pressure and really seemed to understand I was new at this and was helping provide valuable information.

From my perspective, Jason gave me some good information that could be used during lease negotiations. I could try to offer a shorter lease term with a renewal option that included an incrimental increase. Something like a one year lease with an option to renew with a 3.5% increase. I do believe this is the kind of thing Jason’s extra information would help me with.

I would be responsible for all utilities. There is at least one restroom installed in each space, with the largest space having two. Interior remodeling would be my responsibility. The only requirement is that I have any plans pre-approved prior to seeking permits from the county. When I asked about being able to put in a deli/coffee bar, I was told that Starbucks (which is a current tenant) had an exclusive agreement to supply coffe. So what I could do is still have the deli bar, but I could not advertise any specialty brand coffee, even though I could serve it.

Now that I’m thinking about it, the best thing I could do with regard to the deli/coffee bar, is to talk to the management of the Starbucks to see if I could swing some kind of deal with them. I’m not sure what kind of deal, but I need to put that at the back of my mind and noodle it for a while.

Here is a basic chart of the costs for the different sized spaces currently available:

Size Monthy Cost Triple-Net Cost

• 1178 $1767.00 $319.04
• 1229 $1843.50 $332.85
• 1448 $2172.00 $392.17
• 1620 $2430.00 $438.75

I need to get this information into a spreadsheet for comparison against other properties, and then get it posted to my Mind Map.

Time spent on the phone with Jason, approximately 15 minutes.

Asa Jay