JLL expands in downtown Tampa's Truist Place
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Apr 2, 2024

Real estate firm JLL Inc. has taken the wraps off its new office space in downtown Tampa.

JLL expanded its footprint by about 20% in Truist Place, the office tower known for its illuminated ziggurat, with a move to the 27th floor. There, it will occupy 20,000 square feet, up from the 16,218 square feet the firm vacated on the 11th floor. About 100 employees work from the space, JLL said.

That’s a large lease by Tampa standards, according to JLL’s own metrics: The firm reported in the third quarter of 2023 that 60% of office leases signed in the Tampa Bay region since 2015 were under 10,000 square feet.

Brent Miller and Jeff Heller, JLL managing directors, represented their firm in the lease transaction. The tower’s owner, North Carolina-based Highwoods Properties, was represented by Lauren Coup, senior director of leasing.

As more companies re-evaluate their office real estate and turn to hybrid work models, real estate brokerages like JLL are investing in their own office space as a way to show clients the importance of office space. CBRE, which left the central business district for Tampa Heights in 2023, debuted its “Workplace 360” office model in its new space.

At Truist Place, JLL’s Work Dynamics team worked with architecture firm Gensler to design the new workspace, which features “open workspaces, private offices, multiple breakout sections and conference rooms to facilitate meetings and conversations,” JLL said.

“We selected an office space that we could design and build out to meet the needs of our growing and diverse employee base while fostering collaboration, innovation and socialization within teams,” LaShawn Bates, JLL’s brokerage leader for North and Central Florida, said in a statement. “In addition, it will further strengthen our connections with clients and relationships with community and business leaders in Tampa Bay.”