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Thomas F. Campenni CPM CCIM and TL Campenni have represented the owner in leasing the remaining store at 41 East 11th Street/95 University Place to American Ootoyo, a Tokyo Japan restaurant group for its first American eatery. The rental rate was over $100 per foot with an aggregate rental of over $3 million during the 10-year lease term.

As 2014 begins, our commercial real estate market continues to improve. While there is no other business as local as real estate, the national trends from absorption rates to the rental rates are all showing that they improved in 2013 and will continue improving in the new year. This is a relief after the depressed market of several years ago.

While current trends do show the market on an ascending climb, no one should become overconfident in this still-fragile economy. Developers must not flood the market with new product since it is essential to maintain equilibrium with users' ability to absorb the commercial space coming on line. At the same time, while rents have steadily risen, there is only so much of an increase tenants will be able to pay.

Long term trends would suggest that demand for all forms of commercial space from retail to office to industrial will not increase as rapidly going forth. In the past, when the economy continued to improve, the level of demand for space would correspondingly rise. I don't think the demand for space this time will be as strong. The difference will simply be a function of the changing nature of the work place.

Coming out of the "Great Recession," most individual businesses and industries have rethought how they operate. Even before the downturn, we saw the reduction of office space per person and even the elimination of individual desks for many employees. This trend will continue as tasks once done in-house are either outsourced or accomplished by employees working remotely.

In the past decade, technology has created viable and highly productive ways to work from home or some other offsite, remote location reducing the demand for traditional office space. It is possible for employees to work at home and have their productivity monitored in real time at the headquarters location. Employers now know when computers at a home office are turned on and what employees are doing at any given time. Phone calls can be answered at a company's location and sent on to the employee as if he/she were in the next office.

Not only has there been a revolution in how office work is accomplished but there have also been dramatic changes in the manufacturing sector. With computerization, the vast factory floors teeming with semi-skilled workers have been redefined. Now one person in a control room can monitor robots making products. And with the introduction of 3D printers on the factory floor and increasingly in offices, parts can be manufactured in the location where they will actually be used instead of having to be shipped from around the world. Prototype components can be evaluated and adjusted is a matter of hours not weeks. This allows for a rapid response to innovation that was not possible even a few years ago.

These trends not only impact the amount of space needed but also the type of space. In coming years, a building will face technical obsolescence at a much faster rate than in the past. The design of the building must take this into account so that systems can be altered and replaced to maintain the functionality of the property in this rapidly changing landscape. The owner and property manager must be aware of these and other technical developments to be successful in the future.

Thee following was in the November/December 2013 issue of CIRE magazine:

Thomas F. Campenni, CCIM, of Thomas F. Campenni Co. in Stuart, FL represented the owner of 41 East 11th Street in the 10-year, $10 million lease of 20,000 sf of office space in New York City to LaForce & Co.

Go to Page 47 at http://cire.epubxp.com/i/206598 to see the article.

Thomas F. Campenni CPM CCIM has just represented the owner of 21 West 46th Street, New York City, NY in leasing the entire 3rd Floor (7500 sq ft) to Suberi Brothers, Inc. a jewelry concern. The 1930 "art deco" office building has just undergone an extensive restoration and renovation. The lease is for a term of ten years with an excess rent of $3,000,000.

I didn't vote for President Obama either time. I didn't think he would be a very good president. In my estimation I was right. After the elections in 2008 and 2012, my view was in the minority. But, Barak Obama is my president as well as every other American's president. Because I disagree with him politically, it does not mean he is a demon or a monster or someone trying to ruin our nation. My fellow Americans, who continue to spew hatred of him, are being un-American.

When did it become so fashionable, so acceptable and so respectable to demonize the other side when we disagree on issues? Where is the civility that we should all demand in order to have a free and open society? We may not agree on a policy or policies, but does that mean we should hate and despise someone who holds differing beliefs? Our tendency to abhor another person because of a differing opinion is counter-productive to an open society.

I believe several things have happened to us in the past few years that make it easier and more acceptable to voice disdain for ideas with which we do not agree. As more and more of us rely on our news and information from cable stations, online news, and websites, we listen and read to only those outlets that agree with our formed opinions. No need to bother with differing viewpoints when we can have our own pre-conceived notions ratified in the world of talking heads. The proliferations of new sources have also hastened the political specialization of those sources. This is the same whether you are liberal or conservative, Republican or Democrat, black or white.

We choose friends that tend to believe the same as we and live in neighborhoods with people who are much like us, and associate with organizations and (sometimes religions) that narrowly define what it means to be a member. The more affluent we are, the easier it is to spin a cocoon against the outside world with all its differences.

But difference is what made the United States great. New people, ideas and cultures have constantly bombarded our shores since Native Americans allowed the illegal immigrants from Europe to land more than five hundred years ago. Proportionately, the largest bilingual school program was for the German children of New York and Philadelphia in the 19th century. How many of us grew up Catholic and could define ourselves and others from the parish attended? Eventually, most of us ventured from those parochial environments into which we were born out to the greater world.

We all are prejudice to some degree. We fear that which is unknown. That is why we retreat to the safety of those who are like minded. In the past, it was harder to retreat because daily life required so much more interaction with different races, religions and ethnicities. Many of us now live in a one dimensional community untouched by difference. Our state legislature then draw up districts comprised of as many politically likeminded folks as possible in order to create a one-dimensional district. These communities and political districts are not socially or politically sustainable over time.

For as long as these make-believe communities and districts exist, state representatives and congressmen are free to ignore the minority viewpoint in their districts. This insularity of ideas, thoughts and people result in a staleness that begins to rot the core of American ideals. Since you now confront opposing ideas not directly while speaking to someone sitting next to you but through the internet, the constraints brought by good manners no longer apply. If there were more face-to-face encounters the venomous level of what passes for discourse would greatly improve.

Throughout American history, we have had those who hated and despised those who are different from themselves. Perhaps I was fortunate to live most of my life In New York where everyone was from somewhere else. Some days, from the time I left my home in the morning until I returned at night, I spoke to no one who was native born. I was the minority, the "foreigner", the one who could not communicate in the lingua franca of the moment. I could not speak fluent enough Spanish or speak at all in Creole, Greek, Polish, Hindi or Pashtun. While I may have complained, at the same time I reveled in the fact that all these different cultures and people had come here just as my ancestors had to have a better life.

We, the children and grandchildren of immigrants feel as if "they" will overwhelm good old America with their foreignness. I know that is not true, they will only enhance our society like my forebears and yours. I have always said it takes one generation to be an American. How many of us have had the experience of seeing someone named Chin or Patel and expecting that person to speak English with a heavy accent. It turns out they have the same accent as I do, because they were born in America. I am sure our ancestors were greeted with the same stereotypical reaction.

Demonization of differences is an old American custom. From politics to religion to language to culture the "natives born" have always hated the newer immigrant. That is why a small subsection of the American electorate has such hatred for Obama. (I think he is a terrible leader and president.) Instead of giving a reasoned argument to his failures they lash out calling him a Muslim, as if that is an invective instead of a religion, and much worse. That approach does not win arguments because it is based on fear and non-articulation of cogent reasoning.

If one wants to have a serious discussion of our political or social differences, it is necessary to have respect for the other person as a fellow human being. Without rules of civility to guide us we descend into warring tribes and factions that are far from the founders' ideas and aspirations. Name calling and shouting will not sway an opponent. A civil or social policy must derive from beliefs that are unclouded by prejudices either real or imagined. But the first thing we need to do is accept our differences and embrace others with whom we may have differences as fellow Americans.

The business of professionally managing property has never been easy. It has grown much more complicated with the proliferation of new laws by government at all levels. New laws should be passed when they are needed to insure the safety of our occupants, employees, property and the public at large. Too often the development of new laws and regulations is based not on those precepts but rather on a bureaucratic need.

The New York City Buildings Department should be the only local agency charged with promulgating and enforcing laws and codes related to the construction, alteration and operation of the commercial and housing stock in the city. The Fire Department, HPD or the EPA should have no jurisdiction in regard to building matters. Each of those agencies has different internal cultures and a myriad of conflicting codes regarding property that result in an enforcement nightmare for the building owner and agent.

In the past two decades, fires and malicious false alarms in New York City have dropped precipitously. Engine companies now respond to non-fire and medical emergencies at a much a greater rate (by almost ten times) than they did 20 years ago. The FDNY is now largely out of the fire fighting business and has increasingly moved into other areas. One of those areas is their enforcement of a confusing one-size-fits-all code for NYC buildings. A building today is much more likely to be visited by an FDNY inspector than a Building inspector.

The two agencies, instead of working together for a common code for buildings, work separately and enforce different codes which are sometimes in contradiction. A better solution would be for the implementation of one code administered by the Buildings Department. The FDNY and other agencies should be consulted when the code is changed in order to have their technical expertise included, but enforcement should be left to one department as well as all fees and permits needed to operate or build a structure.

Most building owners and agents want to operate their properties safely and legally and do everything possible to insure that. There should be one agency in charge of any one industry. Duplication of effort only leads to confusion, needless expense and ultimately a lack of new development. Agencies established for one purpose should be used for that purpose only. As time passes, some government agencies may need to be discontinued not reassigned to other duties for which they are not capable. The city does need two or three Buildings Department.

Thomas F. Campenni, CPM CCIM, has represented the Owner of 41 East 11th Street in the rental of the entire 6th Floor (20,000 sq feet) to LaForce & Company, a marketing and public relations firm. The term of the lease is 10 years with an aggregate rental of over $10 million. With this lease the building of over 250,000 square feet is completely rented. Thomas F. Campenni also manages the property.

Thomas F. Campenni, CPM CCIM, renewed a lease for Rand Engineering and Architecture PC for an additional 10 years for the 10th 11th and 12th floors at 159 West 25th Street in New York City. Rand Engineering has been a tenant at the building in New York's Chelsea neighborhood for the past 25 years. The aggregate rental income for the 22,500 sq. feet is over $9 million. Thomas F. Campenni, CPM CCIM, also manages the property.

The Stuart News 07/07/2013, Page B02

TRIANGLE PROPERTY PURCHASE - Ask Citizens for Advice

BY Thomas Campenni, Stuart

I supported Stuart buying the Triangle property, even though there is no plan for what its use would be.

This piece of property will be critical to the city's further redevelopment. That being said, any isolated development of that property or other city-owned properties downtown would be premature.

There is no good reason for us to rush to develop or change anything in isolation. The city commission needs to think in a coordinated and cohesive way about the entire downtown area including Colorado and East Ocean Avenue.

Mac Stuckey is absolutely correct when he states that we need citizen involvement and, ultimately, majority acceptance of any plan.

His idea of a citizen panel to help form a consensus on Stuart's future is an essential ingredient to success. What we do not need is another expensive consultant's useless report.

The community leaders may be surprised by what the ordinary person wants for the city of Stuart. It may be quite different from what the commission or bureaucracy thinks is for the best.

Once a sustainable plan for Stuart has been drawn up through consensus, then a timeline and funding streams to accomplish the plan's development can be worked on .

If I understood correctly, the Triangle property will be paid for in three years. That will be our planning and development time to make sure the changes that are being proposed and implemented are for the good of all of Stuart.

Now is the time for thoughtful and sustainable planning for the entire area. Let's avoid government's predilection to act "in the moment" and contrary to the common good.

Go to this link to read more...

http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20130519/REAL_ESTATE/305199980#.UciWyqWRsYw.email

Please go to the following link to read my article at ezine.com:

http://ezinearticles.com/?New-York-Real-Estate-Brokers-Then-and-Now&id=7748135

I read two very interesting stories in the local paper. The first story announced that the Army Corp of Engineers was readying new releases of fresh water into the Saint Lucie River from Lake Okeechobee. The second had to do with the annual rebuilding of Bathtub Beach and having the next door tony community of Sailfish Point contribute to the effort. These two acts only illustrate how powerless we really are in the face of the natural world and how we refuse to recognize it.

Hutchinson Island, like every barrier island, was naturally formed to protect the actual shoreline from the impact of the ocean. These islands are of huge importance for the creation of wetlands by controlling the impact of waves on the mainland side of the islands. Coastal ecosystem could not exist without them. While man may covet the view, nature never meant for these protective barriers to be sites for expensive homes.

If we did not permit building on these islands then man could enjoy these wonders in their intended state. There would be no roads to protect. We could stop the subsidization of insurance on homes and condos that weren't meant to be built. We, in our mistaken belief that man knows best, disregard common sense to think we can hold back the forces of the sea. When King Canute couldn't hold back the waves crashing on shore by his command, he stated, "let all men know how empty and worthless is the power of kings." Our government is not as smart. We continue to believe that these homes will be spared from the next hurricane. Instead of seeing that the beach is the entire island, we focus on rebuilding a narrow strip extending into the water. There is no ebb and flow. No matter who contributes funds to this insanity, eventually the ocean will win.

Lake Okeechobee, while one of the largest lakes in the United States, is also one of the shallowest. Nature meant the lake to overflow its banks periodically sending fresh water to replenish the ecosystem to the south. Again, man through the Army Corp of Engineers, wanted to protect those who had foolishly settled by the Lake's edge. Their mandate was and is to dredge the swamps and allow agriculture and home builders to tame the frontier. By seeking to change the natural environment we have only succeeded in the decimation of the Saint Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon while providing for subsidized sugar and unneeded subdivisions.

From the smallest atom to the most complex eco system there is sanctity and holiness of purpose in the natural world. There is no denying that everything on the earth is interconnected. When man alone (or collectively through government) changes anything, then there are consequences. One cannot truly believe in a Deity and then treat His creation with such arrogance. Even if one does not believe in a supreme being, does not the divinity of the natural world speak for itself? The continued disregard for natural law will only prove how idiotic man really is. To quote Mark Twain, "Every civilization carries the seeds of its own destruction".

Thomas F. Campenni CPM CCIM has acted as the broker for the Owner of 134 West 37th Street, an office building located in the Midtown South neighborhood of Manhattan, in renting the entire 11th floor of 10,000 sq feet to Donorschoose.org. The organization is a national nonprofit that buys supplies for schools throughout the United States. The lease is for ten years and will have an aggregate rent of $4,750,000. Thomas F. Campenni also managing the property.

Like all insular institutions, Martin County's Business Development Board has a disconnect from the rest of the county. It appears that the staff and executive board have no outside contact with the people who live here and who pay for their very existence. I envision them sitting around the office running one more bad idea "up the flag pole" and everyone in the room applauding. Then they announce it to the rest of us and when it is met with derision, they can't understand why.

From hiring a public relations firm (do they really need more publicity?) to substituting the faces at the negotiating table, is this going to fundamentally change the dynamic? There was a problem from the very beginning with the concept of the BDB. It was one of those ideas that sounds fantastic in the abstract, but when it comes down to the implementation of the idea, it just does not work. Like so many government or quasi-governmental bodies, their nebulous mission becomes easily subservient to the actors involved. The board, politicians and especially the employees continue to lobby and expand the organization not for any discernible benefit to the community but for the survival of those receiving the financial benefit.

So often when it comes to government action, I feel I am watching an old Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland movie where the kids put on a show and they end up on Broadway. Reality and common sense take a back seat to poor ideas run amuck. I believe it stems from a lack of thoughtful and serious beliefs in the role of government by us as a community and a nation.

How can one formulate good policies if one has no philosophy of governance? If you are a proponent of truly free markets of capital and labor, then the very idea of a Business Development Board is ludicrous. A free market approach rules out the choosing of winners and losers by government. By definition, if government is going to give an advantage to "A" of any kind, then "B" through "Z"are at a disadvantage.

Not only philosophically is it a bad idea for government or government-financed entities to dispense favors to chosen businesses and individuals, it is also a corrupting influence on our body politic. When tax dollars are being dispensed in this way, there is actual or perceived corruption in the awarding of those dollars. Did the winner contribute to the commissioner's campaign? Was the looser someone the director of the BDB disliked?

By using tax dollars for the benefit of the chosen, the rest of the citizenry receive no benefit. It is not anti-business or growth to end funding with tax dollars of the BDB. Our county should use a portion of those funds saved to have a person to expedite the governmental bureaucracy for new and existing businesses who want to open or expand in the county. Excellent quality schools, low taxes and transparent government would do more to bring jobs to Martin than the crony capitalism expressed in the very idea of a Business Development Board. It smacks of favoritism and more reminiscent of the planned economies of the defunct Soviet Union than the principles of Adam Smith. No one should feel you need to know someone in order to be successful. It should be a level playing field for everyone regardless of whether your friend is on the County Commission or cousin employed at the Business Development Board.

New York University has just renewed its lease for the entire 7th Floor (20,000 sq ft) at 41 East 11th Street New York, NY for 10 years. Thomas F. Campenni CPM CCIM represented the Owner in the transaction. The aggregate rent for the 10-year renewal will be over $14 million. The building is in the heart of New York City's Greenwich Village and is also managed by Thomas F. Campenni.

Thomas F. Campenni CPM CCIM has represented the Owner of 159 West 25th Street, located in Manhattan, in leasing the entire 4th floor (7500 square feet) as executive offices for Journelle, Inc., a retailer of women's clothing with stores in the NY metropolitan area. The building, located in the Chelsea neighborhood, is also managed by Thomas F. Campenni Company. The tenant signed a ten-year lease with an aggregate rent of over $3 million dollars.

As seen in the 4/14/2013 edition of The Stuart News...

Thomas Campenni, Stuart Amusements go overboard

A March 30 editorial praised SailfishWater Park and its financial success. But should government funds ever have been used to build an amusement park?

As stated, the park's operation should be trouble-free and profitable for now. In the future, the infrastructure will need funds for maintenance and new attractions as the Parks Department has stated.

Whether the theme park will then generate enough capital is an open question.

The original concept was for a new state-of-the-art aquatics center to serve as a community pool and a venue for the county swim teams. The Martin County High School "antiquated" pool was to be closed. (It is still open.) I agree that it is a governmental function to build and maintain recreational centers for the community. My question: How did Martin County go from building that to constructing and owning a water amusement park?

Even if the amusement park continues to generate enough funds to maintain and add attractions, should government be involved in this type of business venture?

If the far less adventurous aquatics center had been built without the amusement aspect, would not have the Florida State Finals still have come bringing the stated economic benefit?

One commissioner was skeptical from the beginning as to whether the county should own and run a theme park. She was absolutely correct. Government has no place in a private-sector endeavor.

And operating even a successful theme park is not a governmental responsibility. A government park by its very nature is for affordable recreation for its citizens.

What about those citizens who can't afford the price of admission? I guess they should realize Sailfish is a business and needs to make a profit.

Thomas F. Campenni CCIM CPM has represented the owner in renting to J.I.M. Investment LLC d/b/a Sweat Shoppe a 2500 sq foot store plus basement. They will be opening their first east coast branch. Sweat Shoppe is a spa environment specializing in heat and water therapy. The store is located at University Place and East 11th Street in the Greenwich Village area of Manhattan. The property is an historic office building, and the ground-floor retail spaces recently underwent a complete renovation of its 20,000 sq feet. This was the last retail space that was vacant. The aggregate rent for the term of the lease will exceed $3,000,000.

Commercial real estate is doing well at the end of the first quarter of 2013. Despite the best efforts of Washington to kill the recovery, existing businesses are expanding while entrepreneurs feel it is the right time to open new ones. After nearly six years of doom and gloom, people seem ready to look to their futures optimistically. While there are still some lagging economic indicators, I believe that we will continue to have steady, if slow, growth for the next several years.

In the past manufacturing in the U.S. was declining, but that is no longer the case. The lowering of U.S. wages, energy concerns and our continued productivity compared to the rest of the world make the overall sector on the edge of a growth spurt. Industrial real estate will have to be upgraded since the new plants will have many fewer semi-skilled workers but more robots and highly skilled employees. This knowledge-based manufacturing will be suited to the Northeast, West Coast and Midwest markets. Any new large scale plants, such as car manufacturing, will be located in the south where there are cheaper land and labor costs.

The office sector will continue to improve. New York has shown that it has the resilience to adapt to changing times. Tech companies are coming into the City in increasing numbers. Along with other more traditional office users, the City has rebounded nicely from the depths of the recent recession. Other cities such as Atlanta and Los Angelis have not yet turned around. Chicago is making steady, although unspectacular, progress in the office market. All in all, as long as the office property has modern infrastructure, there should be little problem in renting.

However, I do see continued problems for the retail sector. It was over-built at the time of the recession, and the supply is still greater than demand. Absorption of locations will be slow and, in some markets, it will be years before equilibrium has been achieved. Areas such as Manhattan or downtown Chicago have little to fear, but from strip centers to conventional malls, I would urge caution before buying.

Finally the multifamily sector has been doing quite well. As more and more people were precluded from buying, renting became their only option. As rents rise and the economy improves, more people will want to own again. However I believe that the under 40 generation will not as eagerly want to tie up so much of their capital in home ownership. While their parents moved to the suburbs to have children, this generation is staying in the cities. As the job market changes from one where employees remained with a company for years, the evolving model means employment is more and more fluid. They may need to move much more rapidly than their parents to take advantage of the changing market. The illiquid nature of owning a house or condo may prevent them taking the next job or assignment.

I believe that the commercial market will continue to do modestly well over the next three to five years. If the federal government can get its act together, it may prove to be a very good time for the real estate industry. In fact if the mortgage interest and/or the real estate tax deduction are cut back or eliminated, then owning a home will not be as financially appealing as it is now. This will lead to more people renting rather than buying. At the same time as the economy improves so too will the office and industrial sectors. All in all, it is a good time to be in the commercial market.

Click on this link to read Tom's ideas about an additional mooring field in the St. Lucie River.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2013/mar/10/letter-mooring-field-wont-accomplish-what-martin/

Thomas F. Campenni CPM and CCIM has represented the owner in leasing the entire 12th floor at 134 West 37th street to Jacob Feinberg Katz & Michaeli Consulting Group LLC, a professional engineering firm. The 12th floor was recently been renovated with new baths, wood floors, windows and skylights. The building is located in New York's garment center. The aggregate rent for the lease term of 10 years is over $3 million.

As seen in The Stuart News on March 3, 2013:

Thomas Campenni, Stuart

Salary disparities make no sense

Martin County elects a school superintendent who is responsible for the day-to-day education of our children. There is no requirement that the superintendent have any educational experience or management background.

Conversely, the people who manage our cities and county are appointed. On the state and national level, we elect our executive. Whether you agree or disagree with Gov. Rick Scott and/or President Barack Obama, the majority of voters elected them.

We are deprived of this right in selecting our local government executives. The "professional executives" in our county were not elected and are responsible not to the voters or taxpayers, but to either the city or county commissioners.

We have structured our local government to be analogous to a private corporation where the shareholderelected board chooses the chief executive officer. In a privately owned company, this may be appropriate, but it certainly isn't in a democracy.

An elected executive charged with the daily oversight of the permanent bureaucracy will be mindful of the electorate when making decisions. Without the accountability that comes with elections and a legislative body that acts as a check, the executive forgets to whom he reports.

An example of this would be Stuart's new police chief, who was appointed by the city manager without commission involvement.

Here is an economic reason for an elected executive. Gov. Scott earns $130,723 as governor (governing 65,755 square miles and a population of 19,317,568), Taryn Kryzda earns $168,394 (753 square miles and a population of 147,495), and Stuart pays Paul Nicoletti $169,629 (8.5 square miles and a population of 15,718). An inverse correlation with levels of responsibility seems apparent.

Lastly, if the voters fire Scott, he doesn't leave with a severance package unlike what will happen when Kryzda and Nicoletti depart.

Cleck on this link to see my opinion piece in The Stuart News.

http://treasurecoast.fl.newsmemory.com/loadPage.php?token=48bKxOHW6M7Er6PU5pGXnpiihJaTpJCtysVwdJGjxJWfl6XBk9Ddz%252BWYlXJvkqaWkqGZpIGblqCQpg%253D%253D

Thomas F. Campenni CPM CCIM has represented the Owner in leasing the entire 12th Floor of 10,000 sq feet at 134 West 37th Street in Manhattan to Jacob Feinberg Katz Consulting Engineers for a term of 10 years at a rent of $3,500,000 over the course of the lease. The building, in the neighborhood known as Midtown South, continues to attract engineering, architecture, and tech companies.