Flight to quality is the buzzword in office leasing these days, but one property owner is taking the concept literally.

Some office tenants and brokers are being offered complimentary helicopter rides to market recently built office space at California Market Center, a roughly 1.8 million-square-foot mixed-use property at 110 E. 9th St. in downtown Los Angeles, according to promotional materials.

The rides, organized by brokerage firm Cushman & Wakefield, are the latest effort to woo companies back to the office amid stubbornly high vacancy rates as employees continue to work at home and avoid some downtown areas, companies cut costs and staff in a shifting economy, and businesses look for newer and more energy efficient buildings. Other office leasing marketing efforts in recent months have featured apartment rent discounts and broker bonuses.

A helicopter would pick up a tenant rep broker and their client at an airport in greater Los Angeles and drop them off a couple of blocks from California Market Center at a commercial helipad, said Brittany Winn, senior director of Cushman & Wakefield who is marketing the space for lease.

The helicopter can pick up tenants from multiple airports around Los Angles, including Burbank, Santa Monica and John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California. Tenants invited to travel by helicopter must be looking at spaces of more than 100,000 square feet, according to marketing materials.

The Cushman & Wakefield leasing team came up with the idea themselves as a way to show off not only the mixed-use California Market Center but also to give a sense of the amenities surrounding California Market Center in downtown L.A.

"It's a special project and it requires special transportation," Winn said.

Cushman & Wakefield's Los Angeles team began marketing the rides on Monday. California Market Center has roughly 950,000 square feet of available office space after Toronto-based Brookfield put roughly $250 million in renovations into the complex, which was built in 1963.

Local investor Jamison Properties sold an estimated 50% interest to Brookfield in June 2017. So far, California Market Center has lured commitments from two major tenants, Adidas and Forever 21, which took a combined 269,000 square feet in 2022.

That said, office leasing in downtown Los Angeles has been challenging. Vacancy has risen to 18.8% from 17.6% one year ago, according to CoStar data, as the economy slows and companies pare back. Meanwhile, downtown L.A. remains unfavorable to some tenants due to crime perceptions and homelessness issues.

Brookfield also faces challenges with other office buildings in downtown Los Angeles. Brookfield DTLA, which is partially owned by Brookfield, delisted its shares this year and has defaulted on loans related to the trophy 777 Tower at 777 S. Figueroa St. as well as the Gas Company Tower.

A Brookfield representative didn't respond to a request to comment. The helicopter rides include a return trip home after the tour is completed.

Cushman & Wakefield's Mike Condon, Brittany Winn, Pete Collins, McKenna Gaskill, Scott Menkus and Eric Olofson are marketing the California Market Center for lease.