Williams Equities Secures 66 KSF Manhattan Lease

28 & 40 W. 23rd St. dates back to 1911. Image courtesy of Williams Equities

Fintech company Ramp will relocate its Manhattan offices to 28 & 40 W. 23rd St., to occupy 66,000 square feet at the Williams Equities-owned building. The firm is subleasing the space from Microsoft and will transition to a direct lease in March 2024, doubling the space it previously occupied at 71 Fifth Ave., in Union Square. Colliers represented the landlord, while Cushman & Wakefield worked on behalf of the tenant.

Initially completed as a retail property in 1911 and converted to office use in 1982, the two-building asset spans 561,000 square feet, rising six and 12 stories, respectively. Floorplates range between 25,000 and 66,000 square feet.

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Additionally, 28 & 40 W. 23rd St. encompasses 105,000 square feet of retail space, fully leased by Home Depot. Office tenants also include Estee Lauder brand Aramis, which occupies 166,000 square feet at the property, according to CommercialEdge data.

The ownership has implemented capital improvements over the last several years, featuring new lobbies and cooling towers. Future upgrade plans include the construction of a new rooftop amenity deck.

The property is between Fifth and Sixth Avenue in the Flatiron District. The location is near Madison Square Park and close to numerous public transit options.

Leasing activity in Manhattan

Colliers Vice President Jessica Verdi, along with Presidents Michael Cohen and Andrew Roos and Advisor Mac Roos, represented Williams Equities in the leasing agreement; Cushman & Wakefield Vice Chair Michael Mathias and Director RJ Johns negotiated on behalf of the tenant. Mathias was recently instrumental in brokering a 121,903-square-foot lease in Lower Manhattan, at a Silverstein Properties-owned building.

As of August, Manhattan’s asking rates registered a 2 percent drop year-over-year, remaining the highest in the nation at $69.58 per square foot, a recent CommercialEdge report shows. The borough’s vacancy rate stood at 17.3 percent, up 3.3 percent since last year.