Nearly 500 commercial real estate professionals packed a ballroom at the Grand Hyatt Hotel on Rocky Point in Tampa for the annual NAIOP Broker Update held in conjunction with the Tampa Bay Business Journal Commercial Real Estate Market Forecast.

Steve Tombrink of Grubb & Ellis Commercial Florida and Carl Cronan of the Tampa Bay Business Journal served as moderators of the program. Presentations on the state of the commercial real estate market were made by:
Bob Krueger, First Industrial Realty Trust - Industrial
Michael Winters, GVA Advantis - Investment
Pat Duffy, Colliers Arnold Commercial Real Estate Services - Retail
Larry Richey, Cushman-Wakefield of Florida - Office
Bill Eshenbaugh, Eshenbaugh Land Company - Land

The market forecast was mixed this year as the slowdown in home sales and the property insurance crisis have cooled the recent "hot" real estate environment. Larry Richey pointed out that the Tampa Bay area is no longer a "cheap" alternative for office space. Meanwhile, Bob Krueger noted that job growth continues to drive the industrial sector where one million square feet have been absorbed within the last twelve months.