Here’s a look at how Bellingham business spaces are doing during the latest COVID surge
While businesses were impacted by the latest wave of COVID-19 cases in summer and early fall, so far it hasn’t led to a rise in empty spaces in Bellingham.
Demand for retail spaces such as stores and restaurants actually increased in the third quarter, according to a new report done by Ryan A. Martin, co-owner and broker at Pacific Continental Realty in Bellingham.
Retail was surprisingly strong given the challenges of the pandemic, according to the report. The vacancy rate for Bellingham’s 8.3 million square feet of retail space in the third quarter was 3.7%, down slightly from 3.9% in the second quarter.
The average asking price for leasing space was $18.81 per square foot, up from $18.50 in the second quarter. For retail spaces in Bellingham, the lease price rate has generally not moved much up or down in the past decade, Martin said in an email.
According to a report from the real estate company Colliers, the national retail vacancy rate was 5% at the end of 2020 and projected to hit 5.6% in 2021. The average price per square foot for national retail space is projected to be $20.90 in 2021.
The Bellis Fair area, which has suffered from the U.S. land border closure for non-essential travel since March 2020, filled some spaces in the third quarter with the arrival of the restaurant Sliced in the former Boston’s space, as well as the seasonal store Spirit Halloween, which is occupying 12,000 square feet in the former DSW shoe store.
“Moving into the holiday season, we expect to see increases in retail occupancy as seasonal holiday stores begin to open their doors,” Martin said.
Martin does expect to see a rise in turnover among restaurants and bars after the holiday shopping season. While there could be closures, he also noted that there are also a lot of potential buyers looking for spaces that have commercial kitchens, particularly ones with oven range hoods already in place. Oven range hoods, particularly for restaurants, can be expensive to install.
How much restaurant/bar turnover will take place in early 2022 could depend on what happens next with the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Typically bars and restaurants in Bellingham have better revenue during the holiday season, so they could see a little boost depending on consumer confidence in dining out and take-out,” Martin said in an email.
With a significant number of workers still working from home, the vacancy rate for office space did rise from 3.8% to 4.1% between the second and third quarters, according to the report. Industrial space remains very tight, with the vacancy rate below 1% in the third quarter.
This story was originally published October 6, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
