Retail and Office Shell Construction Considerations

Most small businesses generally want to be able to move in without thinking about construction. They want to install their fixtures, move in and open for business. From a building owner’s perspective, on the other hand, you do not want to spend money to build out a space unless you know that the work done will be adequate for the tenant. The following are items that tenants at Swans would have liked as vanilla shell items:

Ideal Vanilla Shell

Four fire taped walls
Finished ceiling
Electrical panel with wall outlets and switched ceiling outlets
Handicap accessible bathroom
Handicap accessible entrance
Sealed concrete floor
Air conditioning

The actual shell conditions vary and can include more or less than the items above.

The CheckList below provides a sample of the types of considerations that must be discussed between the Project Manager, Architect and Leasing Agent during the design phase of commercial developments. The list is not all-inclusive and there will be issues to consider for your project that are not included here.

The CheckList is organized by CSI code. This list is still under review and has not been reviewed to determine if all items are listed under the correct codes.

General Design Considerations

Do retail businesses have a front display area and a more private back work area?
Can the business owner use a restroom without closing the business?
How are deliveries made to the business?
Who cleans up messy deliveries (Like fish or meat.)
How is trash removed from the business?
Can customers park near the front door of the business?
How is the business seen from the street?
Where are smells from the business ventilated? Good smells like Coffee and bread can be vented in the direction of customer while stronger smells, like fish and spicy cooking can be vented away from customers and neighbors.

Division 1 – General Requirements

Price and Payment Procedures

Which work done under contract by Tenant and which work by Landlord

Administrative Requirements

Is work by Tenant covered by contracting requirements such as prevailing wages.

Temporary Facilities and Controls:

How will existing tenants be projected from construction. Specifically:
Noise (especially jackhammer work),
Smells from construction – this is particularly a problem if neighboring employees have chemical sensitivities or if food is being prepared.
Dust from construction – particularly from sheet rock or concrete

Division 2 – Site Construction

Foundation and Load Bearing Elements

Will the foundation designed be adequate for the particular use. Printing presses, large commercial ovens and other large equipment may need special foundations.

Utility Service

Does each business have separate meters for electricity, gas, and water. If not, how will costs be allocated among tenants?

Planting

Will site trees or other landscaping block signage?
Does irrigation spray outside areas that retailers may use for display or seating?
Is irrigation in a location where retail customers may trip over sprinkler heads

Division 3 – Concrete

Cast-in-place Concrete

If concrete slab has extensive plumbing or structural requirements that are likely to change depending on the tenant, then consider not placing the concrete until the tenant is selected. Discuss with your broker to determine if this will impact the ability to attract a tenant to lease the space.
Single pour vs. finishing slab. If there will be extensive floor sloping, the slab may be designed with a second finishing slab or topping slab. This reduces cracking and provides a better surface. It also costs more.

Division 4 – Masonry

Division 5 – Metals

Division 6 – Wood and Plastics

Division 7 – Thermal and Moisture Protection

Division 8 – Doors and Windows

Metal Doors and Frames

Delivery people smashing into it with their carts will open any door used for deliveries. Plan for this by designing the door and hardware for heavy-duty use.

Entrances and Storefronts

There is a wide range in quality of storefronts. Before you finalize the job or accept contractor substitutions ask for a reference for a nearby installation and visit the facility to be sure that the entrance components are working well. Problems to look for are gaps in the joints between frame elements, evidence that hardware has required repeated replacement and watermarks from water leaks into the interior.

Glazing

If you plan on uses that will generate noise, make sure that the glazing will provide the required noise protection.

Division 9 – Finishes

Get Samples of all finishes proposed by your Architect prior to bidding and have the contractor provide samples of any substitutions.
Ceilings – If you decide to have exposed industrial ceilings note that some tenants will insist on covering them with drop acoustical ceilings. If the ceiling is exposed, provide gutters or raceways for gas, electric conduit, telephone, cable, and other wiring.
Flooring – At Swans, we are very happy with stained concrete. Bathrooms must be tiled.
Acoustical Treatment – As much as you can afford.

Division 10 – Specialties

Visual Display Boards

Directories for Office or Retail Tenants
Directory Maps with you are here indicators
Parking direction signage

Pest Control

Should boric acid or other pest control chemicals be placed in walls before walls are closed?
Sonic pest control equipment?

Manufactured Exterior Specialties

How will signage be attached to the building?
Will there be special features such as a clock, weather vein (ideal for scaring pigeons) or planters
Flagpoles – Who will raise and lower the flags? How often will they be changed?
Postal Specialties – How will businesses get their mail? Where will packages be left?
Mail slots in doors? – Can mail slots be locked if tenant does not want it?
Storage Shelving – Where will property management store equipment, seasonal decorations, signage etc.....
Telephone Specialties – By the time you provide DSL phone equipment, a new system may supercede it.
Toilet, Bath and Laundry Accessories – Diaper changing station for customers?

Division 11 – Equipment

Maintenance Equipment

Power washer
Exterior HEPA vacuum for areas that kids may play in
Floor buffing equipment
Carpet Extractors
Drain snake for longest plumbing run

Vending Equipment

Gum Machines – is the income generated worth the clean up required
ATM machines – Make sure that you are not required to supply the cash for the machine.

Audio-visual Equipment

Common area and/or elevator music?

Parking Control Equipment

There is no issue more important in retail then parking – The control of cars in and out of the lot in urban areas must be carefully thought-out with an experienced parking operator.
Bicycles – Racks on site or on sidewalk? Enclosed storage for bikes? Will security cameras cover parking areas for bikes? Cities are beginning to require parking facilities for bikes.

Solid Waste Handling Equipment

Trash compactor – If restaurant waste is anticipated, the bin must not leak and there must be a drain to facilitate cleaning.
Cardboard Bailer – leave room for storage of cardboard bails
Recycling – where is it stored? How does it get from tenant space to storage space to recycling vender? Is the volume of recycling from your building enough to allow recycling vender to pick-up directly from tenants?

Food Service Equipment

Mechanical flues – If you want a restaurant, most cooking facilities require a fire hood that ventilates to the roof. This will require a chase. The most common mistake is to provide one large chase for all of a building’s needs. There are requirements for separation of the intake and exhaust vents and the intake and plumbing vents. To meet these separation requirements, more than one chase may be required.

Division 12 – Furnishings

Art

Fountains – kids will put soap, sand and any other nearby landscaping material in the fountain. This can be designed for. Any structure with water may be used as a climbing structure if it is not designed to discourage this.
Sculpture – If you do not want kids to play on it, do not build it.
Murals – Place in location that birds can not perch anywhere over the mural.
Tile Mosaic – If glossy surface tiles are used, they can be keyed.
Ask Pyatok Associates about their birdhouses.

Furniture

Benches or tables for customers – Although Tenant’s generally supply this, there may be common areas between tenant uses where a place to sit adds a lot of value. Examples include seating near elevators, near features such as a fountain, or near a children’s play area.

Division 13 – Special Construction

Sound, Vibration and Seismic Control

HVAC systems, restaurant equipment and compressors for refrigeration must all be heavily isolated from occupied space to avoid sound and vibration transmission. This equipment can generate a lot of heat, so it is often best located on the roof.

Security Access and SurveillanceCard

key systems allow for monitoring who is in the building after hours.
Camera system features to consider include:
Auto iris lenses to be sure that changes in light levels do not blind cameras.
Security casing to prevent your camera from being stolen.
72 hour taping system capable of taping images from multiple cameras.
Equipment to tie security camera images to Internet site.

Detection and Alarm

Although Tenants should have their own alarm systems, you may want to consider alarms in common areas that are not designed for after-hours use. Break glass detectors for common areas can be an early warning for areas that are not occupied at night.

Division 14 – Conveying Systems

Elevators

Hooks in the cab to accommodate protection blankets will protect finishes from being destroyed by furniture moving.
Ware and tear on elevator can be reduced if the fire stairs for the building are designed to be open and inviting as an alternative to the elevator.

Division 15 – Mechanical

Plumbing Fixtures and Equipment

Are there any fixtures that should be activated my motion detectors (sinks, toilets etc.)

Division 16 – Electrical

Wiring Methods

Can wiring gutters be installed to allow for future changes in wiring or cabling?
Should power poles or floor outlets be installed to place power in areas away from walls?

Electrical Power

What size electrical panel is provided? How many additional circuits are provided for tenant.
What types of 220 power will the transformer support.

Lighting

Are fixtures provided or only fixture outlets?
Which out lets are switched?
Is there a separate signage Circuit? Are outlets for the signage circuit both inside and outside?
Fixtures operated by motion detectors ( bathroom lights, parking area lights, lights in dark common areas outside)
Which outlets can be used for holiday lights?

Communications

What is the telephone capacity in the building?
Is there a location for microwave antenna?

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