Renovation of downtown office building nearing completion

by kathy a. bolten

Finding tenants to fill parts of a newly renovated office building in downtown Des Moines will be challenging, Chris Costa acknowledges.

Des Moines’ central business district, with over 6.4 million square feet of office space, had a vacancy rate of 19.6% in the third quarter of 2021, according to CBRE|Hubbell Commercial’s market survey.

But Costa, CEO and president of Knapp Properties, is optimistic there are prospective tenants who will be interested in leasing space in the five-story building at 611 Fifth Ave.

The Weitz Co., a longtime Des Moines architectural, engineering and construction firm, is relocating its corporate headquarters and other company divisions to the office building. The company, which is the general contractor of the renovation project, will occupy two floors and part of a third.

The remaining space is available to be leased, Costa said.

“We think having a Class A building that is in the epicenter of downtown is going to help us overcome the challenge of attracting tenants,” he said. “Companies are not flocking back to the office currently, but I think that will change once we work through the variants [of COVID].”

The building is directly south of the Hilton Des Moines Downtown and is connected via the skywalk to the Iowa Events Center, which includes Wells Fargo Arena and Hy-Vee Hall.

Built in 1954, the structure was originally home to Central Life Insurance Co. Over the years it has had several tenants, mostly insurance and financial service companies.

Knapp Properties, which has owned the building since 1999, began making plans to renovate it before the start of the pandemic. (JSC Properties Inc. is a partner in the project.)

The building’s energy and mechanical systems were upgraded, windows have been replaced, and an accessible entrance has been added for people with disabilities. Other renovations inside the structure give the building a more modern feel. For instance, ceiling tiles have been removed, exposing ductwork.

A rooftop patio is planned that will be available for use by all of the building’s tenants, Costa said.

“It’s an amenity that is becoming more and more common,” he said.

The renovation, which is expected to be completed this spring, was originally estimated to cost $23.3 million.

Chris Costa, CEO and president of Knapp Properties, a development, brokerage and property management company, stands in newly renovated Class A office space in the building. Photo by Duane Tinkey

The Weitz Co. is leasing the third and fourth floors and a portion of the first floor of the office building at 611 Fifth Ave. In February, desks for employees were set up. Photo by Duane Tinkey

A new staircase in the newly renovated office building at 611 Fifth Ave. Photo by Duane Tinkey

Small windows were replaced with large ones throughout much of the building. The larger windows provide views of downtown Des Moines. Photo by Duane Tinkey

An architect’s rendering of the renovation of an office building. The building is owned by Knapp Properties. Rendering by Substance Architecture

Before the renovation, the interior of the office building at 611 Fifth Ave. included ceiling tiles and small windows that made the space dark and unwelcoming. The renovation included adding larger windows and removing the ceiling tiles. Photo special to the Business Record