Faltering in Flatiron office market

From the October issue: On paper, at least, the Flatiron District would appear to possess all
the trappings of a bustling, mixed-use area for commercial real estate:
Centrally located (check); moderately priced (check); good restaurants
and sophisticated architecture (check and check). But at just over 19 percent, the district also boasts one of the
highest office availability rates (which measures the percentage of
space that is available for lease, or will be available within the next
12 months) in Manhattan. And real estate experts are grasping for
explanations. According to a report by the commercial brokerage CB Richard Ellis, the
availability rate in the Flatiron District climbed 0.2 points in August
to 19.3 percent. In comparison, the neighboring districts of Chelsea
and Union Square had rates of just 11.6 percent and 10 percent.