Build it and they will come? In this case, Fusion Medical Staffing is — to west Omaha’s Waterford

R&R Realty Group knew it was a risk three years ago to start building an upscale west Omaha office park — without having first secured any tenants.

The developer was counting on an abundance of frills and an alluring atmosphere to draw talent-hungry businesses to Fountain Ridge. An amphitheater, rooftop deck, wellness center and patio over a waterfall are among the amenities packed into the first glass-covered structure to sprout on the 60-acre campus.

“Build it and they will come” was the idea behind that initial facility, called the Waterford Building.

Instead came the coronavirus. A spike in remote working. A giant step backward for the office leasing market.

“It was definitely a frightening prospect,” said R&R Realty spokesman Spencer Shireman. “With the pandemic shutting everything down, you wondered, would that be a long-term trend?” 

Now the latest turn: The fast-growing and Omaha-founded Fusion Medical Staffing has announced it will become the anchor tenant of the 180,000-square-foot Waterford, located east of 192nd Street and south of West Dodge Road.

Fusion’s long-term rental agreement for 115,000 square feet marks one of the biggest office lease deals in the Omaha area in recent years and brings Waterford close to full occupancy.

Medical staffing industry is hot

Shireman views it as a sign that — even as many employees are demanding work-from-home and other flexible work schedules — office space will remain “relevant.” 

Demand is particularly notable among local and regional medical staffing companies, like Fusion, that connect traveling health care professionals with jobs.

“This industry continues to see substantial growth in the Omaha market from an employee headcount and the amount of occupied space,” says the latest office market report from Colliers International.

Take Triage Staffing, which recently bought a 100,000-square-foot building at 13609 California St. Triage plans a 2023 move, following a multimillion-dollar renovation, into its new headquarters that will triple the space for the business that hit 186% year-over-year revenue growth in 2021.

OneStaff Medical, another travel nursing agency, also recently relocated to a larger headquarters at 10802 Farnam Drive, citing 150% growth from 2020 to 2021.

Fusion, which was launched 13 years ago in a co-founder’s basement, wanted to invest in its current and future workforce with a new and innovative workplace, said president and CEO Steve Koesters. The new headquarters will about double the company’s existing space.

Company leaders said they are prioritizing wellness and incorporating employee workplace ideas, yet are also committed to a hybrid and flexible work culture. Move-in for the 700-worker company is projected to be next year.

“We’ve been able to grow our workforce a significant amount in the last several years, and we’re eager to invest in those team members with a workplace that is truly tailored to what they want,” said chief marketing officer Tara Sprakel.

Office market holds steady

Overall, the Omaha area office market continues to “hold steady,” despite concern about inflation, the Colliers report said. It also said the area’s vacancy rate in the first quarter of this year improved to 9.5%, compared to 10.4% the same time a year ago.

While leasing activity has picked up compared to the year before, Colliers and other brokerage companies note that the start of new office construction projects has slowed as a result of pandemic-related uncertainty.

Among office facilities already underway are the five-story Union Bank and Trust building and the 270,000-square-foot Applied Underwriters complex, both in Heartwood Preserve near 144th and Pacific Streets.

Mutual of Omaha has announced its plan to build a skyscraper on the former W. Dale Clark Library site downtown.

Like Mutual and Fusion, many businesses have allowed a continuation of remote and hybrid job schedules but also see the value and need for physical work space.

Fusion leaders say they’re leaning on employee focus groups to help create a physical environment that builds upon the company’s  “fun and casual culture.” 

Alysia Radicia, an interior designer with RDG Planning & Design, said Fusion has had success in doing things differently.

‘Outside the box’

“We’re taking that same ‘outside the box’ approach to imagining their new office space,” she said.

The result, Radicia said, will be a worksite for her client “that’s deeply responsive to the social changes we’ve all experienced over the past several years: a place where people feel connected, supported and excited to come to each day.”

Mike Homa, president of the Nebraska division of the West Des Moines-based R&R Realty, said that when his team started building the Waterford, he envisioned it would be a modern and techie home for growing businesses hunting for a place able to lure new talent.

In real estate parlance, the office complex was a speculative build, meaning construction launched without any for-sure employer tenants but with the confidence that the market was promising enough to bring on tenants.

Before Fusion, the Waterford attracted a few smaller tenants, including TEKsystems, C.H. Robinson, Elk River Wealth Management and R&R’s Nebraska division office. Shireman said about 20,000 square feet is still available to lease in the structure.

Coming to the broader Fountain Ridge Office Park — which is expected to eventually draw $300 million in investment — is MD West ONE’s new medical building. The Omaha-based physicians group, partnering with R&R Realty, broke ground on that 38,000-square-foot building last year on the west side of 192nd Street. It is expected to be done early next year.

When fully built out, a process projected to take several years, the Fountain Ridge campus will stretch out on both sides of 192nd Street south of West Dodge Road. 

Fountain Ridge amenities — including several water features and the opportunity for high-visibility signage along the busy West Dodge corridor — contributed to Fusion’s decision to move there, Koesters said.

“We’ll be able to make our team members feel at home while also opening up opportunities for future employees in the Omaha community,” he said.