Summer Return to Work Update

As of May 2022, about 55% to 60% of DowntownFTL office workers are back in-person compared to pre-pandemic levels, a 15 to 20 point increase from 1 year ago based on estimates from property managers and recent traffic in the parking garages of Class A buildings in DowntownFTL’s central business district. This is about 12 to 17 points better than the national average.?

Kastle Systems, a security provider at Class A office buildings around the United States, maintains at “Back to Work Barometer” to track office occupancy across 10 U.S. metro areas. Kastle currently estimates that nationally about 43% of office workers are back in the office, a 7-percentage point increase since February.?

While most cities in the United States are still struggling to generate activity in the urban core, DowntownFTL is in a unique position. DowntownFTL is significantly outperforming its pre-pandemic levels regarding dining, retail foot traffic, and tourism. As a mixed-use destination with a rapidly growing residential population, DowntownFTL is positioned to thrive even if office workers are not back in-person 5 days per week.

Retail foot traffic in DowntownFTL compared to pre-pandemic levels is significantly outpacing the recovery among peer cities in Florida and across the country. The DowntownFTL retail foot traffic recovery is happening at a rate 23 points faster than Downtown Miami’s and is over 50 points higher than New York City’s.

DowntownFTL’s visitation from tourists is 92% above pre-pandemic levels. Downtown Miami’s visits from tourists remain 15 points below pre-pandemic levels even as Miami Beach visitation performs at a much higher level (+17%, ranking below DowntownFTL). Global cities like New York and San Francisco remain at least 40 points below pre-pandemic levels.?