Motorola Solutions is downsizing its headquarters in Chicago’s West Loop by 30 percent, adding to evidence that companies’ office cuts aren’t over.
The telecommunications equipment company listed about 54,000 square feet for sublease on the 38th and 39th floors at 500 West Monroe Street, Crain’s reported. The company’s lease at the 44-story West Loop building runs through June 2031.
Since the start of the pandemic, companies have reduced their office footprints as remote work became the norm. While the growth of sublease availability slowed last year with offices hopeful that employees would return, available subleases for offices in the central business district was still about 83 percent more than when the pandemic began in early 2020, according to brokerage CBRE.
Motorola hasn’t said why it listed part of its office or whether employees working downtown will move to its suburban office in Schaumburg, the company’s previous headquarters. In 2015, Motorola announced it would relocate its main office to the West Loop, joining a flurry of suburban companies heading to the city to acquire tech-savvy talent. The company opened up its 150,000 square feet of office space on six floors the following year.
Taking over leases has been an attractive option for new tenants in the city looking for a move-in ready workspace at bargain prices as rents in Chicago remain little changed despite record vacancy rates. Recently, marketing software company Braze took over a 50,000 square foot lease at 1 North State Street from another software company, Showpad. An influx of Class A buildings offering amenities and the rising cost of raw materials have kept rents stuck at pre-pandemic levels.
Buildings that are offering office space for sublease include 141 West Jackson Boulevard, 125 South Wacker Drive, and 1330 West Fulton Street. HomeAdvisor recently put its 31,000-square-foot office at Merchandise Mart at 222 North LaSalle Street on the market, according to CoStar Group.
[Crain’s] – Connie Kim