Among the key new leases in recent months Downtown were nearly 70,000 sf to the Internal Revenue Service at Wells Fargo Place and 170,000 sf to the State of Minnesota's Department of Employment and Economic Development at the First National Bank Building. But offsetting some of those gains was the move out of two state agencies--Department of Health Services and the Department of Employment and Economic Development exiting 130,000 sf at Metro Square, according to the report.

The competitive office category measures non-government and leased, non-owner-occupied space--about 9.3 million sf in all. The association estimates that of the 16.6-million-sf office market, 56% is competitive, 25.5% is government and 18.5% is owner-occupied. On an overall basis, the vacancy rate is 13.6%, down from 14% in August.

As of Feb. 1, the competitive office market Downtown consists of 26.7% class A space, which is considered to have the most attractive amenities; 61.5% class B space; and 11.8% class C space. Vacancy is lowest in class A space at 14.3%, down from 15.9% in August, and highest in class B space at 28.7%, down from 29.7%. Class C space saw a rise in vacancy to 22.8% from 21.6%, in part because some of its tenants are upgrading their space given the opportunities in the A and B categories.