Common Ways to Add Value to Commercial / Mixed Use?

[Jeff Licciardi]

Hey All - hoping for a few quick bullet points on common ways to add value to commercial space.  I'm working on a mixed use space.  I occupy greater than 50% with a business I own.  The other half of the building is rented out for several years.  

I have a basement that's unused.  A couple hundred square foot outbuilding that is unused (has a garage bay and door access) and a massive parking lot that we don't need.

Would love any ideas.  Questions are both anticipated and welcome :)

Thanks!

[John Warren]

@Jeff Licciardi the garage seems like the most obvious way to drive NOI in my opinion. In a lot of the areas where I invest, the population density is extremely high and garages are actually in pretty high demand. I have one client that was able to rent out his garage recently at $100 per spot in Cicero, and several of my clients have gotten $100 per spot in the Berwyn neighborhood right next door. I would imagine that garage desirability is a function of density though, so I am not sure how this will play out in your area.

Your parking lot brings up similar ideas for me. Is parking an issue? Is overcrowding on the streets common? Can you put up self storage on the parking lot and rent that out? 

As for the basement space, can you easily access it? I keep thinking of self storage as a way to drive returns here, but without knowing your property it is tough to visualize how to use a basement space.