PwC may be changing Downtown office towers
One of Pittsburgh’s largest accounting firms could be on the move.
According to multiple real estate sources, PricewaterhouseCoopers is planning to leave its digs at U.S. Steel Tower for One Oxford Centre when its lease expires at the end of 2021.
The accounting firm has been in the hunt for new space for its regional office since last summer.
PwC currently leases about 85,000 square feet in Downtown’s U.S. Steel Tower. It plans to take about 70,000 square feet in One Oxford Centre, just a few blocks away on Grant Street, according to sources.
Spencer Waybright, a PwC spokeswoman, had no comment.
Should the firm follow through, it would be moving into one of the city’s most distinctive skyscrapers, one that has undergone $50 million in upgrades since being purchased by San Francisco-based Shorenstein Properties for $148.7 million in 2016.
Dan Adamski, senior managing director of the Jones Lang LaSalle real estate firm, said a PwC relocation from U.S. Steel to One Oxford “would be another example of the flight to quality in our central business district.”
“With an emphasis on providing a workplace that helps recruit and retain key talent, companies continue to upgrade into higher quality buildings with more amenities and enhanced efficiency,” he said.
Oxford Centre is one of a number of prime Class A office properties in Downtown that has invested heavily in adding offerings like fitness clubs and conference and employee space in order to stay competitive.
Nonetheless, with Downtown
vacancy rates for Class A space at their highest level in 10 years, according to the Newmark Knight Frank real estate firm, tenants could still have the upper hand in making deals for new surroundings.
Vacancies are climbing, Mr. Adamski said, because of corporate right-sizing — with some companies reducing their space requirements — and competition from hot office markets like the Strip District, Oakland and other parts of the East End.
“Blocks of space in the CBD are not being absorbed quickly, especially in the lower building classes, so landlords are vigorously competing with each other to secure any available tenants. Accordingly, the current downtown market dynamic is highly favorable for tenants actively considering their options,” he said.
PwC isn’t the only company that may be leaving a Downtown office building for Oxford Centre.
The HDR Inc. engineering firm and about 160 employees are moving from 11 Stanwix, the former Westinghouse Building, to the 45-story skyscraper. The company is building out 32,000 square feet on floors 16 and 17 with expansion in mind. The space can hold about 200 employees.