Brokerage first to sign up for new south Reno complex

The brokerage firm A.G.

Edwards & Sons Inc.

is the first tenant to sign a lease for Magnolia Double R, a new business complex currently under construction on Double R Boulevard off South Meadows.

"We're not expanding from our base team of 21-22 people," says Daniel J.Woods, A.G.

Edwards vice president and branch manager.

"Just moving."

A.G.

Edwards' lease on McCarren Street is up March 1.

The new 6,800-square-foot space at Magnolia Double R, at $2.20 per square foot (full service),made more sense than rehabbing the old space,Woods says.

If the new location seems far south to some, and several years ahead of its time, Tim Ruffin, senior vice president of Colliers International, the leasing agent, responds that "The demand (in the area) is today." And it will be there tomorrow, too.

Soon, he says, "Double R Boulevard will be the dominant surface street servicing east Reno to south Reno." "We are going to see a major move south again," adds Ruffin.

A new shopping center at Mount Rose and Highway 395, freeway access, and nearby executive housing are all draws for more and more business into the area.

"I think within a few years the number of high-paying white collar jobs in South Meadows will surpass the Meadowood area," he says.

Magnolia's strategic and brand marketing manager,Mark Hatjakes, believes, too, that the first tenant in Magnolia's new office space in the South Meadows will set the tone for the complex.

With 60 percent of the third floor, A.G.

Edwards will have a high-profile presence in the new building.

The three-story building, set for completion Dec.

1, is part of a complex slated to include three office buildings plus a clubhouse.

A second building is scheduled for construction beginning in the second quarter 2005, contingent on 75 percent of the first building being leased.