Vienna, VA – Scheer Partners Inc., a leading provider of commercial real estate services in the greater Washington metropolitan area, announces today its opening of a new office in Northern Virginia to serve its expanding client base of entrepreneurs and reaffirm its commitment to growing the life sciences sector in Northern Virginia and throughout the region.
Mike Norris, a vice president and associate broker with Scheer Partners, will lead the new Tysons Corner office at 8300 Boone Blvd., Suite 500. Norris has completed more than 200 commercial real estate projects for more than 100 entrepreneurs in the Washington area.
“In economic downturns, tenants have a unique opportunity to reduce their facility costs through a lease renegotiation, relocation or operating-expense review,” said Norris, who has worked at Scheer Partners for more than four years and in the industry for nine years.
But it is not just “big” tenants that have this opportunity. From this new Vienna office, Norris and a handful of other Scheer Partners professionals will focus on uncovering new ways for entrepreneurs and early stage companies to reduce their expenses, achieve greater space efficiency and improve their facility.
“Most of the commercial real estate industry has focused on the real estate requirements of large corporate users; my focus has always been on the local entrepreneur opening his or her first office and expanding over time,” Norris said. “I truly enjoy seeing my clients grow from the very beginning into successful and sustainable businesses.”
Norris and others at Scheer Partners work with entrepreneurs and small companies in Northern Virginia spanning a variety of industries, including high-tech, information technology, software, general business services and life sciences.
These clients are based throughout Northern Virginia, in areas such as Alexandria, Arlington, the Dulles Corridor, Prince William County and the Tysons Corner area. For that reason, Vienna “is a good central location for an office,” Norris said. He added that Scheer Partners, which also has two offices in Maryland, needed a physical presence in Northern Virginia to efficiently serve its clients there.
Another major goal of the office is to collaborate with major stakeholders of the Northern Virginia life sciences industry, such as George Mason University. Scheer Partners is a sponsor of the Mason Enterprise Center, and Norris serves on the board of directors of the Business Alliance of George Mason University.
“We remain committed to not only serving the needs of biotechnology users in Northern Virginia, but also expanding the supply of laboratory space to enable growth,” said Robert Scheer, president of Scheer Partners and manager of the Greater Washington Life Sciences Fund.
Last year, Scheer Partners and Chevy Chase-based JBG Cos. announced that they had created a $100 million equity fund to develop and acquire life sciences-based commercial real estate properties. The Greater Washington Life Sciences Fund will pursue $300 million in investments in the Washington-area market.