In ballpark, general ranges, what would it cost to professionally
build a 7,000 commercial building with the following specs, including
GC, permitting, etc...

- 1 story
- good quality finishes; lots of glass
- used for student training in high end environment (not warehouse or
retail)
- comprehensive HVAC and electrical usage
- 16 "hotel style" private rooms that students should live in for two
weeks (including full bath, private AC, etc)
- not including the cost of land, build-out or technology
- in a 2nd tier (Charlotte, Orlando, etc) city

We would not actually rent out the "student rooms", but do we have any
permitting or legal issues with being seen as a "hotel" since people
would stay there for two week periods while training?

Feel free to ask clarifying questions if it will help you come up with
a more focused price range.

Thanks

In general terms, you could look at Commercial Real Estate listings
for the area you wish to build in (such as
http://www.starboardnet.com/tcn_features_east/east_16/) and see what a
Long Term Lease rate is for Office (not retail or warehouse space)
goes for. That will give you the high side of your square foot
estimate. Considering that you will need to do some additional
customization for your utilization, being on the high side will
probably put you very close to what you'd spend.

Of course it is assumed that the land you're looking to build on is
already properly zoned...