It’s one thing to say that a city is transforming, growing, becoming something different, but it’s another thing to witness the changes in person. Buildings being constructed on every corner and moving trucks from all over the country bring tidings of innovation, opportunity, and open doors for creativity. Once defined as a college town, the city of Gainesville is making a name for itself as a metropolitan center for industries of every kind ranging from biotech engineering to tech startups and everything in between. The rapid pace of urbanization may come as surprise to some, but the commercial real estate scene has been hinting towards this reality for over a decade as the number of emerging businesses looking to rent office space in Gainesville FL has steadily risen. 

 As local developers stake their claim on areas surrounding the University of Florida, their priority has been to provide office spaces for graduates and larger companies willing to relocate. The availability of Gainesville office space for rent was sparse in the past as the large majority of Gainesville community members were transient students or faculty at the University of Florida. However, as the size of the campus grew, so did the faculty, resources, and the demand for a community outside of the school’s borders. 

 Additionally, graduates from UF started positioning their new businesses in the Gainesville area to capitalize on the resources afforded by a premier research university. Proximity to a network of professors and fellow peers allowed these startups to flourish in an unexpected region, and the city is reaping the benefits, today. 

 Aside from the ever-expanding number of retailers along Archer Road and the development of new communities to host the robust student body, the construction of office spaces is the primary focus for local developers and construction firms as the demand for a space in the Innovation Square corridor increases.

 In response to this influx, local developer Trimark Properties announced construction on a new, four-story office building, Ingenuity. The groundbreaking on this $14 million project, took place on March 17th at the new location on SW 4th Ave. Strategically positioned in the burgeoning Innovation Square district, Ingenuity is the product of years of local development and modernization that created space for corporations to collaborate with startups and build the city into an urban center for progress and technological advance. 

 Expected to open in January 2018, this fully customizable Class A building will allow companies to flourish and cater to the increasing need for contemporary, Gainesville office space for rent. This project was a local effort between Ajax Building Corporation, architects at Flad & Associates, and Trimark Properties, which has created increased opportunities for capital to be poured into the local economy providing the resources that will fund future projects.

 Before the groundbreaking, the first two floors of the building were leased by companies who value the community fostered in the city of Gainesville. The rapid rate of leases garnered by this type of project confirms the fact that office spaces for rent in Gainesville affording 50,000 sq. ft. and ultramodern design elements are a rare find. However, the shortage of Gainesville office space with this level of modernity in design and construction is exactly what the city needs to encourage the type of expansion and development that will draw more companies. The new tenants at Ingenuity will join the impressive roster of businesses located in Innovation Square, such as SharpSpring, Feathr, Mobiquity, and Periscope. As the landscape surrounding the University of Florida thrives with added resources and healthy competition, the local economy will soar, and Gainesville will continue on this trajectory of growth and urbanization.