NAI/Merin Hunter Codman Strikes 21,000 SF Deal

NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, South Florida’s leading commercial real estate firm, today announced that it represented ITT Educational Services, Inc. (NYSE: ESI) in securing a flagship location for the firm’s first ITT Technical Institute in Palm Beach County. ITT Technical Institute, which provides technology-oriented degree programs, has created a 20,760-square foot campus within a three-building office park in West Palm Beach. The college is believed to be the first institution in Palm Beach County dedicated solely to high technology with the ability to award up to Bachelor of Science degrees in that field. The new college is its 11th location in the state and expands ITT Technical Institutes’ national presence to 132 locations in 37 states. The new Palm Beach County college is centrally located at 1756 N. Congress Avenue, less than one-half mile from I-95 just south of Okeechobee Boulevard.
“Palm Beach County has increasingly sought to attract more technology businesses,” said Jason Sundook a Principal with NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, “so it’s only natural that the County is likewise a good fit for an institute of higher learning that is focused on the same.” Sundook represented ITT Education Services in the lease transaction.
Classes at ITT began this month with the fall academic quarter. The college’s five schools of study—the School of Information Technology, School of Electronics Technology, School of Drafting and Design, School of Business, and Breckinridge School of Nursing—include programs that teach skills and knowledge that can be used to pursue careers in the global, technology-driven business environment. The ITT Technical Institute is accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) to award Associate of Science and Bachelor of Science degrees.
Added Jordan Paul, Chief Operating Officer of NAI/Merin Hunter Codman, “ITT Technical Institute is an important addition to Palm Beach County. It’s the type of college from which area businesses can draw for a highly qualified pool of talent going forward. NAI/Merin Hunter Codman may very well be one of those that turns to institute graduates for its IT needs in the future.”
The new college lease brings the occupancy of the West Palm Beach office park, which totals 62,000 square feet at 1756, 1760 and 1764 N. Congress Avenue, to over 95 percent. The property has experienced a huge spike in occupancy aided by both the ITT Institute lease as well as concerted leasing efforts by NAI professionals Barbara LeBrun, SIOR and Lesley Sheinberg, both Senior Commercial Associates at NAI/Merin Hunter Codman. Collectively with Sundook they have leased 52,000 square feet in the West Palm Beach office park in less than one year. Only 2,800 square feet of space remains available at the property, which is situated at the intersection of Congress and Westgate Avenues.
Stated LeBrun, “The high increase in occupancy results from our consistently exposing the properties to a broad array of market uses, as well as from an aggressive sponsor that refused to let a deal fall by the wayside. Ownership was very involved in the process, pushing to find ways to make deals work.”