Sonics & Storm to Move Offices Downtown
May 21, 2007
SEATTLE - The corporate offices of the Seattle Sonics & Storm will be moving to a new prime downtown Seattle location in July, Sonics & Storm President and Chief Executive Officer Danny Barth announced today.
“It’s strictly a business decision,” Barth said. “While we are only moving a short distance, we will realize significant savings in our lease payment on average of approximately $400,000 per year. Additionally, we also see a valuable sales and marketing advantage to being located in the downtown business district.”
Final negotiations are expected to be completed shortly enabling a prospective move to the new offices in mid-July. The Sonics & Storm organization will occupy approximately 22,000 square feet on the 10th floor of Washington Mutual Tower (1201 3rd Ave.), which is identical to the size of the space at the current location. The new lease runs through December, 2010. The lease on the current location at 351 Elliott Ave. W. runs through April, 2010. The Sonics & Storm have a tentative agreement to sublease the current space.
The current office lease is one of the largest fixed expenditures for the teams, making it a logical place to explore for significant savings.
“The economics were such that we simply couldn’t pass up this opportunity,” Barth said. “While I know there may be speculation regarding the timing of the move, the fact is we have been pursuing a more economical office lease arrangement for the past two years. This was purely a prudent business decision from a financial standpoint.”
