Looking for a new location for your business?
There are four key steps to the site selection process – overlook just one and you risk losing money. Our Site Selection Playbook outlines every part of the process.
Our team at Clear Path Real Estate and Development has successfully led several corporations through the site selection process while analyzing the total cost of occupancy. Our team utilizes analytical tools and procedures that give clients unmatched insight into geographic, market or census data in a geographic context thus allowing our clients to make informed decisions that ultimately positively impact the firm’s finances, operations, and culture.
Units of measure include evaluating suitability and capability, estimating and predicting, and interpreting patterns and trends from different geographic perspectives. This analysis and market research provides invaluable insight to guide your strategic location-based decision-making and planning. Below is what you can expect from Clear Path in your site selection considerations.
SITE SELECTION CONSIDERATIONS
The physical location of your commercial real estate venture is nearly as consequential as determining where to build your home – in some cases, even more so. A retailer won’t thrive if their store is too far from established shopping areas, and an office building may have trouble finding tenants if it’s out of the way and hard to commute to. Warehouse and distribution may have difficulty without ease of ingress and egress and proximity to freeways. Evaluate your commercial real estate options with these site selection considerations.
1) The Basics
Develop a short list of needs and wants that every potential site can be measured against. These include the size of a lot, building, or floor, as well as zoning restrictions, local taxes, proximity to major roads or shipping infrastructure, and existing traffic flow.
Don’t forget to look into incentives at the local, state, and federal levels that could influence your decision. For example, the federal Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone) program gives preferential procurement opportunities to small businesses that contract with the government if they’re willing to set up shop in underutilized areas. On state and local levels, economic development organizations may offer expert assistance, market analysis, or even cash incentives.
2) Surroundings
Include neighbors and nearby amenities as you weigh the relative merits of each site. What other types of businesses would be near yours? Could that affect the success of your business? Obviously, you don’t want to hang your shingle next to an established business that offers the same thing you do. Conversely, a business that offers goods or services that complement yours could be a great neighbor – if you’re opening a gym, for example, you might prioritize sites that are near health food stores or sporting equipment retailers.
3) Visibility and Access
How difficult will the commute be for your future employees? Attracting top talent might lead you to choose a site near a highway or major city street rather than a cheaper one in the middle of nowhere. If you have a community-facing business, such as a retail establishment, restaurant or walk-in clinic, your site has to be equally easy for guests to reach. Consider how much you’ll rely on foot traffic from passersby and how close each site is to adequate parking.
4) Safety and Security
Crime rates only tell part of the story. Put yourself in the shoes of a shopper or employee and examine sites for how safe each one feels, especially after dark. How well lit is the property? How close is the parking area and is it adequately lit too? Does the building you’re looking at employ security personnel? Are the ground floor windows reinforced to resist breakage?
Life safety is an important consideration too. Bring a local code compliance professional (and, if possible, an ADA consultant) to see what updates you may have to make to wiring, fire alarms and sprinklers, restrooms, and other parts of the space to comply with code.
5) Signage
Commercial lease negotiations generally devote a fair amount of time to signage considerations, and with good reason. The right sign can help draw people in to visit your business for the first time, while a beat up or generally poor quality sign could give potential customers the wrong impression. If your business will need any kind of signage, make sure you pay attention to that during site selection. What signage locations does the site come with? Will you be charged for additional signage requests? Who will cover your grand opening banners and pull-away signs?