When civil engineering firm Bayer Becker first opened an office in Over-the-Rhine almost two years ago, they had six employees moving in, with room for nine.
"We have 10 in here now, and we're maxed out," said Bob Garlock , vice president of landscape architecture and planning.
So the growing firm took advantage of some shifts in Over-the-Rhine office market as Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. and other office users move to 1203 Walnut St. Bayer Becker will nearly double the size of its Over-the-Rhine office, expanding into about 1,800 square feet of space that was formerly filled byKeating Muething Klekamp PLL . The new lease with landlord 3CDC was also extended.
"We believed in the urban renaissance," Garlock told me in the firm's cozy conference room. "It's important to be down here to demonstrate that."
With offices in Mason, Fort Mitchell and Oxford, Bayer Becker performs work across the Tri-State. The firm provides civil engineering, transportation engineering, landscape architecture and planning, as well as land surveying services.
Since moving to Over-the-Rhine, Bayer Becker is being asked to the table for more projects in the city of Cincinnati than in the past. Other firms, such as Inc., have said moving to Over-the-Rhine helped them land new business.
"It's been great being down here," Garlock said.
The Over-the-Rhine office will now be able to house up to 15 employees and gains two larger conference rooms. HGC Construction is building out the former KMK space for Bayer Becker.
The firm originally signed a three-year lease for 1,800 square feet of space at Saengerhalle, located at 1400 Race St. With the expansion, Bayer Becker extended its lease for another five years.
Garlock expects it will take about three to four years to outgrow the expansion. If the growth comes faster, Bayer Becker can break its lease with 3CDC, as long as it moves into another, larger 3CDC space.