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Article cites cheap rent as a reason businesses are flocking there, but I don't buy it. Houston's downtown, which has excellent office stock and is in the cent

Article cites cheap rent as a reason businesses are flocking there, but I don't buy it. Houston's downtown, which has excellent office stock and is in the center of an exponentially stronger economy, has median rents at about $25 per square foot. Detroit's CBD median is $23 per square foot. Plenty of cheap office space all around this country so I reject that this is the reason.

bluedino 12y ago
Many midwestern cities have an over abundance of office space. If you drive down I75 through the Detroit metro area you'll see buildings that have been empty for years.
angersock 12y ago
...where else can you reside in Enron's old offices? :D
nilkn 12y ago
This page is citing $39 per square foot for all "central business district" Class A office space in Houston: http://www.slideshare.net/AmberRuggles/q1-2014-officemarketresearchreport http://www.slideshare.net/AmberRuggles/q1-2014-officemarketr...
sixbrx 12y ago
Trying to figure out what exponentially means there. "Much"? Or is something varying that I'm missing?
- adventured 12y ago
  I suppose if there were such a scale for economic strength, that you could boil down to a 1 to 10 scale... In the US economy as a whole, Detroit would rate about a 2 or 3, Houston would be a 8 or 9. Exponential is an obvious exaggeration if we're being literal, but given the disaster that is Detroit, overly strong words may make sense to do the mess justice.
bilbo0s 12y ago
Heh... Visit Downtown Houston... then compare it to Downtown Detroit... I think you would rather be in Downtown Detroit. I live behind the gates on Sunset... and I'm sitting in the Museum District as I type this. So don't misunderstand me... there are a lot of nice places inside the 610 in Houston. Downtown is not one of them however. I'm a Houston guy... but I have to say... if you ever actually visit Downtown Detroit, you will find it is MUCH more clean and attractive than Downtown Houston. It was a visit to Detroit that made a lot of people around here kick in to redo or demolish a lot of the eyesore abandoned towers in Downtown Houston. There are just too many of these abandoned buildings in Houston's Downtown right now... so it's slow going.
- cylinder 12y ago
  Well fair enough. Houston's downtown is pretty boring but not too much blight although that abandoned Days Inn needs to go. My point was just that downtown Houston is the center of a much stronger and larger economic area.

bluedino 12y ago

Many midwestern cities have an over abundance of office space. If you drive down I75 through the Detroit metro area you'll see buildings that have been empty for years.

angersock 12y ago

...where else can you reside in Enron's old offices? :D

nilkn 12y ago

This page is citing $39 per square foot for all "central business district" Class A office space in Houston: http://www.slideshare.net/AmberRuggles/q1-2014-officemarketresearchreport http://www.slideshare.net/AmberRuggles/q1-2014-officemarketr...

sixbrx 12y ago

Trying to figure out what exponentially means there. "Much"? Or is something varying that I'm missing?

adventured 12y ago
I suppose if there were such a scale for economic strength, that you could boil down to a 1 to 10 scale... In the US economy as a whole, Detroit would rate about a 2 or 3, Houston would be a 8 or 9. Exponential is an obvious exaggeration if we're being literal, but given the disaster that is Detroit, overly strong words may make sense to do the mess justice.

bilbo0s 12y ago

Heh... Visit Downtown Houston... then compare it to Downtown Detroit... I think you would rather be in Downtown Detroit. I live behind the gates on Sunset... and I'm sitting in the Museum District as I type this. So don't misunderstand me... there are a lot of nice places inside the 610 in Houston. Downtown is not one of them however. I'm a Houston guy... but I have to say... if you ever actually visit Downtown Detroit, you will find it is MUCH more clean and attractive than Downtown Houston. It was a visit to Detroit that made a lot of people around here kick in to redo or demolish a lot of the eyesore abandoned towers in Downtown Houston. There are just too many of these abandoned buildings in Houston's Downtown right now... so it's slow going.

cylinder 12y ago
Well fair enough. Houston's downtown is pretty boring but not too much blight although that abandoned Days Inn needs to go. My point was just that downtown Houston is the center of a much stronger and larger economic area.