Summerlin’s new companies drive home sales

The master-planned community of Summerlin has long been known as one of the best places to live in Las Vegas, with scores of neighborhoods featuring homes in all price ranges and an abundance of amenities throughout its 22,500 acres. A new trend to move the workplace closer to home is driving the relocation of many businesses, large and small, to the community, simultaneously fueling home sales in Summerlin, ranked in 2017 by RCLCO as the nation’s fourth best-selling master-planned community.

“The suburbs are the new city,” said Kevin T. Orrock, president of Summerlin for The Howard Hughes Corp. “Every year, more professional services firms and major companies are choosing to put down roots in communities like Summerlin where employees have access to walking trails, golf courses and parks. Downtown Summerlin, with a plethora of restaurants, from quick-service to fine dining, along with retail and entertainment, has made Summerlin even more appealing to businesses seeking to improve the quality of the workplace by giving employees more access to the same amenities that enhance quality of life at home.”

Case in point are two major law firms well-known in Las Vegas. Ballard Spahr recently moved to the top floor of One Summerlin, the first Class-A office building in Downtown Summerlin; and Greenberg Traurig LLP will soon occupy the top floor of Two Summerlin, the second Class-A office tower at Downtown Summerlin, now under construction and scheduled for completion this summer. Both law firms made the decision to leave areas of the valley traditionally considered centers of business for brand new buildings in the suburbs.

According to Robert Kim, managing partner of Ballard Spahr’s Las Vegas office, the firm’s new Downtown Summerlin location is close to where many of its clients work and even closer to where most live.

“In addition to the added convenience of proximity to many of our clients, our attorneys and employees feel a strong sense of pride and ownership in One Summerlin, the office tower that has become the central landmark of this fantastic mixed-use destination. It’s hard to put a value on all that our new office affords us, including the 360-degree sweeping views of the valley from the mountains to the Strip; the wide variety of restaurants just steps from our door; and immediate access to an abundance of retail for errand-running before and after work that makes everyday life easier. We are thrilled with our decision to relocate to Summerlin.”

According to National Real Estate Investor, urb-suburban is a mashup of suburban office locations in walkable settings with easy access to urban-style amenities like transit, housing, restaurants and retail. At Downtown Summerlin, the Regional Transportation Commission has opened a major transit center by City National Arena, practice facility of the Vegas Golden Knights. Not only is transit on the upswing as a great way to get to and from T-Mobile Arena for hockey games, but its use is growing among millennials, who prefer public transportation for environmental reasons, as well as affordability and convenience.

Choosing a suburban location was a key driver for Aristocrat Technologies Inc., an Australian-based company with a high Las Vegas profile and a leading global provider of land-based and online gaming solutions. The company is preparing to move approximately 600 employees this year to its new headquarters in Summerlin. Currently under construction are two 90,000-square-foot buildings that will comprise the company’s new North American headquarters near Town Center Drive and the 215 Beltway.

“The Aristocrat team evaluated a significant number of options for relocation,” said Aristocrat Executive Vice President and general counsel Mark Dunn. “The location we selected in Summerlin will enable us to provide our employees and our customers with a world-class facility in a great suburban location with access to all the amenities that also make the community a great place to live.”

Allegiant is another company that recently relocated to Summerlin. The company’s corporate headquarters is a unique campus environment comprised of 10 buildings housing different operational units — a total of 215,391 square feet of office space on 14 acres of land and housing approximately 1,000 team members.

“Allegiant is not the typical airline, and our headquarters in Summerlin reflects that — both in design and in its suburban location,” said Maurice J. Gallagher Jr., Allegiant chairman and CEO. “As Las Vegas’ hometown travel company, we like being part of the fabric of the community, and working collaboratively in a campus setting — in ways that a traditional downtown office building environment would not afford. The space is a tremendous value and gives room to grow. And it’s convenient for our employees, as well as our business partners and visitors. We often hear from Summerlin residents that they enjoy knowing a major airline is being operated right in their backyard.”

According to John Chang, first vice president of research services for Marcus &Millichap, now is a real turning point for suburban office space.

Downtown vacancy rates in U.S. cities dropped from 16 percent to below 14 percent between 2010 and 2015. And over the next five years, the majority of millennials will start to move into the age where they’re getting married and starting families. When they do that, these suburban locations with amenities and schools are going to be favored.

These changing trends have created a boon for some suburban office markets and, at the same time, helped to fuel development and demand for a greater variety of affordable housing and suburban apartments.

At Downtown Summerlin, Constellation is the area’s first and now fully leased luxury apartment complex. A second apartment community with nearly 300 residences is planned by The Howard Hughes Corp. to begin construction this year, supporting the growing demand for multifamily suburban living.

“Summerlin has long offered myriad living opportunities,” Orrock said. “Today, with more than 6 million square feet of office and commercial space throughout our community, Summerlin also offers a variety of places to do business in thoughtfully planned office parks and retail centers and with access to all the same amenities that make the community a great place to live. Summerlin is, indeed, open for business.”

For more information on new homes in Summerlin, including more than 30 actively selling neighborhoods, visit Summerlin.com. For information on office leasing and real estate, call Randy Broadhead with CBRE at 702-336-7100.