One of these speculative projects is the 277,081-sf Reckson Executive Park at 58 South Service Road in Melville, the largest spec office project to be completed on Long Island since 1990. After the project's completion, the overall vacancy rate in Western Suffolk County jumped to 14.9% from 12.4% at the end of the fourth quarter in 2000. The park has already welcomed its first tenant; OSI Pharmaceuticals of Uniondale signed a lease for 22,805 sf, so it is unlikely the vacancy rate will stay inflated for long. Leasing activity and sales activity were, overall, healthy.

Long Island is currently experiencing robust class A market leasing activity, with a 9.5% overall vacancy rate and asking rents up from $28.11 at the end of 2000 to $30.49 per sf today. The class B segment has also tightened, reporting a 9.2% overall vacancy rate compared to last year's rate of 9.9% while full service asking rental rates rose by $1.02 per sf to $25.36 per sf.

Cushman & Wakefield predicts that the average asking rental rate will rise slightly during 2001, as the speculative space is absorbed. Krasnow expects that the space coming onto the market will be absorbed over the course of the year, since it provides a variety of locations and square-footage options for potential tenants not previously available in the region.