City's office vacancies rise in third quarter

Office vacancies rose in the state capital during the third quarter as commercial real estate agents hustled to lease vacant space in Annapolis and local businesses cut back in a bleak economy.

Although agents acknowledged that demand has dropped amid the dried-up credit markets, they said the city remains one of the healthiest office markets in the state.

"You look at the surrounding markets and Annapolis continues to be significantly lower," said Chris Bennett, vice president with MacKenzie Commercial Real Estate Services.

Office vacancies in Annapolis rose to 7.57 percent in the third quarter, compared with...