Another law firm to leave central business district for Water Street
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Oct 30, 2023

Water Street Tampa has snagged another law firm from the city's central business district.

Bartlett Loeb Hinds Thompson & Angelos has leased 5,346 square feet on the fourth floor of office tower Thousand and One. The law firm will move from 100 North Tampa, aka the Regions Bank building, and expects to occupy the Water Street office space in May 2024.

Strategic Property Partners, the developer of Water Street, announced the lease on Monday. SPP is controlled by Kirkland, Washington-based Cascade Investment Fund LLC, the investment fund of Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates. Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vink sold his share of SPP to Cascade in June.

The law firm is downsizing its commercial real estate by 37%. It will vacate 8,500 square feet in 100 North Tampa, according to real estate data firm CoStar Group Inc. The firm's office space in 100 North Tampa is being marketed for sublease with availability beginning in spring 2024.

Ethan Loeb, a partner in the law firm, told the Tampa Bay Business Journal on Monday that the law firm is downsizing because it doesn't need as much storage space as it did when it moved to its current office a decade ago.

“Our team looks forward to continuing to serve our clients throughout the city, state, and country in the most vibrant part of downtown,” Loeb said in a statement. “Relocation to Water Street Tampa was an easy decision given the world-class facilities at Thousand and One and the lively neighborhood Water Street Tampa has to offer. We are excited to be part of the growing community in the heart of Tampa’s new downtown.”

Bartlett Loeb's move comes on the heels of another law firm's relocation from the same office tower to Water Street. Bradley, which is also leaving 100 North Tampa, signed a lease for 37,000 square feet in Thousand and One earlier this year. (Bradley's lease is one of the Tampa Bay Business Journal's Best Real Estate Deals of 2023.)

Most of Tampa's newest mixed-use districts — Water Street, Midtown Tampa and Gasworx — have mostly filled their office space with tenants moving from within the region. The Heights has attracted multiple new-to-market tenants, including a 100,000-square-foot operations hub for Pfizer Inc. and the Tampa office of DoubleLine Capital.

When Bradley signed its lease in Water Street, Tampa managing partner Craig Mayfield predicted his firm wouldn't be the only one to move from the CBD to Water Street.

“The CBD, as good as it’s been to the legal industry — these are still buildings that came out of the ground in the mid-’80s,” Mayfield said in April, “and from an amenity standpoint and talent recruitment standpoint, [new recruits] are all looking for the type of community to work in that Water Street offers.”

David Bevirt, executive vice president of corporate leasing and strategy for SPP, said in a statement that Water Street's office space is "almost fully leased."

“Thousand and One has redefined the office market in Tampa,” Bevirt said. “Regional and national companies alike recognize Thousand and One for its wellness-based design and unparalleled work environment within the walkable, amenity-filled neighborhood of Water Street Tampa."