With poll: 500 new jobs: Where could Barracuda find a 100,000-square-foot office in downtown Ann Arbor?

The jobs and the chance to hold onto an expanding employer in downtown is a major opportunity for the city.

But it also begs the question posed by developer Ed Shaffran: “Where are you going to find 100,000 square feet?”

And even if they could, would it even fulfill the California company's vision of creating a campus?

Pollay, moments after hearing the news, expressed confidence that a solution could be reached. “We’ll work it out,” she said.

Yet a look at what’s available downtown, both existing properties and potential redevelopment sites, shows that most options will require some effort.

Ann Arbor does not have a building with 100,000 square feet available - and even few office buildings have that much space.

Just how big is that? Picture the One North Main office building. That’s close. Or 301 E. Liberty, which is about 77,000 square feet. The former Ann Arbor News building, one of the biggest office deal downtown in recent years, is 58,000 square feet.

So Barracuda’s stated goal represents a small slice of the downtown office market when looking at existing buildings with leasable space.

“Where would you put 500 jobs in downtown Ann Arbor?” asks Jeff Hauptman of The Oxford Cos. “We don’t have that kind of vacancy downtown.”

That’s not to say Barracuda and the company's broker, Jim Chaconas, couldn’t quietly approach owners of buildings with an offer to purchase. If that offer includes a buy-out for existing tenants, a deal could happen.

A deal also could be possible at the former Borders headquarters on Maynard Street, where 48,000 square feet has been vacant for years. If Borders chose to downsize or close its store on East Liberty, it could add contiguous space to add to that office space.

Then there’s new construction.

It wouldn’t have to start from scratch: Across the street from Borders, there’s the former Tally Hall. Lower level offices sit under a parking structure and single-story retail space that's owned by McKinley and “going vertical” there would get the company close to both the University of Michigan campus and Google, the last highly celebrated IT company bound for downtown.

What kind of building sites might be under consideration?

There are a few: the single story building west of Sloan Plaza condos on East Huron is marketed for a high-rise redevelopment. The vacant lot north of Bank of Ann Arbor, where 80,000-square-feet can be built. A former lumber yard on North Main near M-14 (which could offer interesting potential to capitalize on the Huron River).

Then there are previous development plays that were envisioned for something else: The former Greek Church on North Main, where the site plan for The Gallery condos soon will expire; the hotel plan for South Division; the block on South Ashley where Joseph Freed & Associates once envisioned their next project.

And speaking of Freed, could Barracuda bring the former Glen Ann Place back to life?

The most obvious building sites are owned by the city, including The Library Lot. And while it’s possible that Barracuda could successfully take a run at one of them, Pollay said it’s not likely to result in a deal.

The city is preparing to formulate a plan for selling them, an effort that could take some time.

“(Barracuda’s timing) is far more immediate than anything we’re going to be able to respond to,” Pollay said.

Hauptman cautions that new construction is expensive - that’s why developers have abandoned it, save for a few projects. In today’s market, he said, rents would have to go up by about 25 percent before it makes financial sense to build instead.

And the sheer size, roughly one-fourth of a city block, will be a challenge.

“It will make more sense to see them go into something existing,” Hauptman said. “There are just not a lot of buildings (that big).”

Paula Gardner is News Director of AnnArbor.com. Contact her at 734-623-2586 or by email.