BOMA (Building Owners and Managers Association) now includes balconies and roof decks in rentable square footage. BOMA 2017 for Office Buildings is approaching the first anniversary of its release, but you may be unaware of an important change that affects both building owners and tenants. Balconies, Covered Galleries and Finished Rooftop Terraces are now included in the “Tenant Area”, previously known as the Useable Square Footage. (USF.) For buildings with these types of amenities, this change significantly affects what is included in the Rentable Square Footage.
The PRA designed 2323 High Crossing Blvd. multi-tenant office building in Madison is an excellent example of this. Taking advantage of the building’s location at one of the highest points in Madison and expansive views to the west, the building owners, Investors Associated, chose to include a covered gallery and a balcony on the 2nd Floor, 2 balconies on both the 3rd and 4th Floors, and a large roof deck on the 5th Floor. BOMA 2017 allowed IA to add almost 5000 sf. to the rentable area that would not have counted toward the RSF in the previous version of the BOMA standard. This is a significant change for both landlords and tenants that can be a benefit to both but also a bit of a shock to tenants that are unaware of the change.