Relocations aiding Fairfield's revival.

Buoyed by relocations from Manhattan and expansions by area businesses, the Fairfield County office market posted significant gains in the first half of 1994.

According to the Rostenberg-Doern Midyear Corporate Real Estate Report, approximately 987,000 square feet of space was absorbed in Fairfield County during the past six months. The county-wide vacancy rate fell to 19.7 percent at midyear, down from 22.6 percent at year-end 1993.

From Greenwich to Shelton, the Fairfield County office market is reporting strong absorption and lower vacancy rates. The Greenwich Norwalk market absorbed approximately 406,000 square feet of space and saw its vacancy rate drop more than four points to 15.2 percent.

Meanwhile, the market that includes Shelton, Trumbull and Westport reported approximately 305,000 square feet of space absorbed in the first six months of the year.

Downtown Stamford's vacancy rate declined to 18.1 percent, the lowest in nearly a decade. A healthy 277,000 square feet of space was absorbed in the city during the past six months.

Among the New York City companies either relocating or opening new offices in Fairfield County in the past six months are J.H. Whitney, Credit Lyonnaise, Grey Advertising, Boardroom Reports and JMW Consultants.

Area companies renewing leases and expanding offices in the county during the first half include Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp., Micro Warehouse, Rogers Casey & Associates, Reuters, GE Capital, Citizens Utilities, Cadbury Beverages, Witco, Clarendon, Playtex and Paloma Partners.

In another positive development for the county, London Fog Corporation announced early in the year that it was moving its headquarters from Maryland to 50,000 square feet at the Darien Green office complex.

"Fairfield County continues to profit from the positive business climate created by the State of Connecticut's aggressive economic development program. By offering generous financial incentives, the state has attracted companies from other parts of the region and helped re-establish the county's reputation as one of the nation's premier corporate office markets," said John H. Rostenberg, principal of Rostenberg-Doern Company, Inc.

"The outlook for the second half of the year is for steady leasing activity and a continued decline in vacancy rates in most areas of the county," he added

The survey of Fairfield County's four market areas showed:

Fairfield County Central Business District

The downtown Stamford office market continues its remarkable turnaround, posting an 18.1 percent vacancy rate, which is down a full two points from six months ago. Absorption of approximately 277,000 square feet for the first half is greater than the total absorption in the city in 1993. Cadbury's recommitment to Stamford gave this market a big boost. MAJOR DEALS: Advantage International, ASI, Cadbury Beverages, Clarendon, Citizens Utilities, Computer Graphics Resources, Credit Lyonnaise, Daymon Associates, GE Capital, Grey Advertising, H.J. Baker, J.H. Whitney, JMW Consultants, Nation's Bank, Nightingale Associates, 9 West Group, Penton Publishing, Reuters, and Smith Barney Shearson.

Fairfield County East

With nearly 305,000 square feet of space absorbed in the first half, the Shelton-Trumbull-Westport office market is on track for a record year. The midyear vacancy rate of 24.4 percent is down more than three points from the end of 1993. The largest deals in this market include Playtex's move from Stamford to 45,600 square feet at Nyala Farms in Westport, and Caldor's acquisition of First Fidelity Bank's 57,000 square-foot building operations center in Trumbull. MAJOR DEALS: American Technology, Caldor, Greenwich Workshop, ITT Hartford Reinsurance, Playtex, The Ryan Partnership, Saber Equipment, Spinergy, U.S. capital, and Weka Publishing.

Fairfield County West

The Greenwich-Norwalk office market led the county in absorption, with almost 406,000 square feet. The midyear vacancy rate of 15.2 percent is the lowest in the county. In a major expansion, Paloma Partners, a financial services company, leased 130,000 square feet at Greenwich American Centre. Another significant expansion was Mercedes-Benz Credit Corporation's renewal and expansion to 95,570 square feet at Merritt 7 Corporate Park in Norwalk. MAJOR DEALS: Boardroom Reports, Bondnet, Finehost, London Fog Corporation, Micro Warehouse, Paloma Partners, Rogers casey & Associates, Shaffer Clarke & Company, Software Securities, TMG Financial Products, USGI, Witco, and Yankelovich.

Fairfield County North

The Danbury office market reported flat absorption and a vacancy rate of 27.7 percent, unchanged from six months ago. Relay Technologies returned 30,000 square feet of space to the market with a sublet at the still River office park. MAJOR DEALS: Diba Industries and Met-Life.

The Rostenberg-Doern Quarterly Office Market Report is the most comprehensive report of its kind on the Fairfield County office market. More than 435 multi-tenant Class A and B buildings in Fairfield County were surveyed. Government owned and occupied buildings, owner occupied buildings, medical office buildings and buildings under 20,000 square feet were excluded.