2 Stamford is the third largest city in Connecticut and is conveniently located only thirty miles away from Manhattan. The city has the largest digital media and financial districts in the Greater New York City metropolitan area outside of New York City itself. Stamford is home to nine Fortune 1000 companies with four of those companies in the Fortune 500 company list 3 Written by Jen Hocken tamford has experienced explosive growth since its last feature in Business in Focus with a continuing six billion Sdollars’ worth of development within the city. Stamford was recently ranked seventh among 209 locations as an “American City of the Future” for its overall economic growth by FDi Intelligence, a division of the Financial Times that studies foreign direct investment. FDi ranks cities based on economic potential, human capital and lifestyle, cost effectiveness, con- nectivity, and business friendliness. In addition to its overall No. 7 ranking, Stamford placed second for its level of connectivity and ninth for economic potential among cities with popula- tions between 100,000 and 350,000. One of the factors leading to this top ranking has been the investment into Stamford Innovation District. Stamford was officially designated an “Innovation Place” by CTNext, the State of Connecticut’s venture capital arm. The city received a $2 million implementation grant that will allow for the creation of an innovation district: a five-square-mile area encompass- ing the Downtown and South End neighborhoods. Innovate Stamford is an association comprising the City of Stamford, the Stamford Partnership, Ferguson Library, Business Council of Fairfield County, Building and Land Technology (BLT), Downtown Special Services District (DSSD), and a number of other public and private partners. The members all share a vision to create a city that is collaborative, walkable, digitally enabled, and connected to New York and other Connecticut cities via the Stamford Transportation Center. 4 Repositioning Stamford’s Premier Stamford for Tomorrow Office Opportunities Today 677 Washington Boulevard www.shippanlanding.com www.highridgeofficeinapark.com 200 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 Commercial Real Estate Since 1919 Tel: 212-481-1122 www.gcomfort.com 5 Repositioning Stamford’s Premier Stamford for Tomorrow Office Opportunities Today 677 Washington Boulevard www.shippanlanding.com www.highridgeofficeinapark.com 200 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 Commercial Real Estate Since 1919 Tel: 212-481-1122 www.gcomfort.com 6 Innovate Stamford has a number of projects that will enhance To help visitors to the city, “We are completing a wayfind- the city through investment into mobility within the city, con- ing study that will help people navigate their way from the nectivity to startups and businesses, and support for entrepre- highway and from the trains and shuttles at the Stamford neurial companies within the region. These projects include Transportation Center. The project will entail taking a multi- Gigabit Wi-Fi network that will provide free high speeds tiered approach to directional signage that will allow people internet access around the Stamford Transportation Center and to reach major destinations in the Stamford Downtown and the city’s downtown parks. This project is part of the Mayor’s South End areas,” says Thomas Madden, Director of Economic LEADING REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS Initiative to provide ubiquitous Gigabit Wi-Fi coverage in the Development for the city Stamford Downtown and South End areas. The Gigabit Wi-Fi network will also be part of the backbone for the city’s auton- Stamford continues to lead the area in new residential develop- IN STAMFORD AND BEYOND omous vehicle zone. Stamford has been designated by the ment construction. The URBY residential housing project has State of Connecticut as one of the test spaces for autonomous begun construction in the city’s infamous four-acre ‘hole in the vehicles. It has already found several hardware and software ground.’ The residence is planned to hold six hundred and forty- companies to begin testing in Stamford. The city expects to eight units among eleven connected buildings. It will also have have their first autonomous shuttles running by 2019. The a café and fitness center. “It has been one of those projects that District also includes several digital and financial incubators we’ve been wanting to see take off for the past thirty years and and accelerators. Another project the district is working is an has finally come to fruition. We are thrilled about it because it expanded bike share program that will extend throughout the is adding diversity to our housing stock,” says Madden. “The Downtown and South End of Stamford and should be com- location is excellent as it is within walking distance of both the pleted by end of 2018. shopping mall and the Stamford Transportation Center.” The city has also invested considerably into an eighteen- month-long project of intersection improvement as well as “To create more efficient transport the re-timing of street lights to allow traffic to move along to and from Stamford, the city more freely with consistent green lights. To create more effi- is currently in the process of cient transport to and from Stamford, the city is currently in the planning a high-speed ferry.” process of planning a high-speed ferry that will leave Stamford and enter the Wall Street area of New York City in approximate- ly fifty-five minutes. Newmark Knight Frank is leading the charge in commercial real estate innovation and client solutions. With a global presence of more than 400 offices and 15,000 professionals, NKF remains the authority in real estate advisory, data and technology. Our clients—corporations, property owners, investors and developers—benefit from NKF’s robust platform of services. Newmark Knight Frank is transforming businesses and properties—and exceeding client expectations. 680 Washington Boulevard • Stamford, CT 06901 • 203.531.3600 ngkf.com 7 LEADING REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS IN STAMFORD AND BEYOND Newmark Knight Frank is leading the charge in commercial real estate innovation and client solutions. With a global presence of more than 400 offices and 15,000 professionals, NKF remains the authority in real estate advisory, data and technology. Our clients—corporations, property owners, investors and developers—benefit from NKF’s robust platform of services. Newmark Knight Frank is transforming businesses and properties—and exceeding client expectations. 680 Washington Boulevard • Stamford, CT 06901 • 203.531.3600 ngkf.com Stamford Harbor 8 There are plenty of other housing development projects underway. The Atlantic Station housing project by the Cappelli Organization recently completed the construction of a 325-unit building and is beginning to lease those units now. The con- struction of a second building with another 325 units will begin in the next eighteen months. Trinity Financial has just finished construction on Vela on the Park and is currently leasing units. In the South End, BLT has just completed construction on NV@ Harbor Point and has started construction on the next two buildings of the Harbor Point redevelopment. Stamford is expected to become the second largest city in the Tresser Apartments state, overtaking New Haven with a population of more than 130,000. This is partially due to the fact that Stamford has one of the lowest median ages in the state. With all of the new apart- ments and events attracting younger people out of NYC, the average age of the population has continually dropped over the past few years, to its current level of 35 years old. Stamford is an exciting place to live. The Mill River Park Collaborative (Mill River) and the DSSD regularly host events that are well known in the region. Mill River Park just opened its carousel to the thrill of all of the young families last year and expects to have their new water park, which converts to a win- tertime skating rink, open this spring. Mill River offers year-round programing in the park for all age groups. Several of the most popular events include the food truck festival, Cantoberfest – an Oktoberfest inspired event – and evening fitness classes. The DSSD hosts Alive@5, one of the largest concert series in the region, which requires extra cars are added onto the train to make room for more passengers to attend the event. The DSSD Competitive Advantage also host the largest Thanksgiving Day Balloon parade outside of NYC, with over 150,000 people in attendance. Bridgewater Associates manages over $160 billion for According to Mr. Madden, who also sits on the executive board some of the world’s most sophisticated institutional for the Connecticut Convention, Tourism & Sports Bureau, the investors. We keep our competitive advantage by city has been experiencing a large increase in day trips from tourists, especially for its wide variety of happenings. investing in our people. Our newest facility in Stamford’s Stamford has been experiencing a significant amount of Harbor Point District oers state-of-the-art workspace business growth in the last couple of years. Germany-based design, along with proximity to both city living and beauty, laundry and home care company Henkel North America is the largest company to call Stamford home in the Connecticut’s great outdoors. past year. The company relocated from Arizona, taking up space in Stamford’s 16.5 million square foot office market. “Stamford is also home to NBC Sports Group, which is the head- quarters for all of the Olympics broadcasting,” says Madden. “In terms of any Olympic broadcast you see on NBC, it all comes through Stamford and then goes out. We also have a large, www.bridgewater.com 9 Competitive Advantage Bridgewater Associates manages over $160 billion for some of the world’s most sophisticated institutional investors. We keep our competitive advantage by investing in our people.