Durst Leases Penthouse Space at Manhattan High-Rise

Apex Pavilion at 1155 Avenue of the Americas. Image by Giles Ashford, courtesy of The Durst Organization

The Durst Organization has signed Global Relay USA Inc. to a 77,000-square-foot block at the Apex, an exclusive penthouse pavilion crowning 1155 Avenue of the Americas in Midtown Manhattan. The cloud-based electronic message solutions provider committed to the unique space at the 790,000-square-foot office tower under a 15-year agreement.

Durst developed the Emery Roth & Sons-designed 1155 Avenue of the Americas in 1984, and the building has been a trailblazer ever since. The 42-story tower was the first building in New York City to offer thermal ice storage and the first in town to become certified under USGBC’s Existing Buildings Operations Maintenance system. 1155 Avenue of the Americas turned heads once again a few years ago when Durst thrust the tower into trophy status via a $130 million capital transformation that included massive renovations under the design guidance of Studios Architecture.

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The Apex emerged as a new offering, the combination of an uninhabitable mechanical space and an underutilized rooftop. Featuring a total of 129,000 square feet of column-free interior space with floor-to-ceiling windows of self-dimming glass, the Apex spans floors 35 through 42 and includes a wraparound, 4,000-square-foot landscaped terrace.

1155 Avenue of the Americas. Image courtesy of The Durst Organization

Even though office space is not in peak demand in Manhattan—Midtown closed 2021 with an overall office vacancy rate of 16.8 percent, according to a fourth quarter report by Colliers—Durst was confident about adding space to 1155 Avenue of the Americas in the form of the Apex.

“Our experience in the market showed us that there is a premium for terraces and space that can inspire employees and impress clients. Our bet was that the Apex would do just that and Global Relay is the perfect fit for this best-in-class space,” Jordan Barowitz, vice president of public affairs with The Durst Organization, told Commercial Property Executive. Under the terms of the lease agreement, Global Relay will occupy space on floors 38 through 42.

Colliers’ Michael Cohen, Howard Kaplowitz and John Brasier represented Global Relay in the lease transaction, while Durst relied on in-house representation by Tom Bow, Rocco Romeo and Tanya Grimaldo.

Return on investment

Apex Pavilion at 1155 Avenue of the Americas. Image by Giles Ashford, courtesy of The Durst Organization

Durst’s transformation of 1155 Avenue of the Americas has paid off, even as Manhattan’s office sector continues to recover from the pandemic. In March 2022, the company noted that more than 200,000 square feet of lease deals had been signed at the Midtown property within the last 12 months.

A transformation like that of 1155 Avenue of the Americas is something Durst considers worth repeating. “We are always looking to improve and reinvent our buildings,” Barowitz said. “We are just beginning the lease-up of 825 Third Avenue, which we have completely renovated and repositioned from a 1960s Modernist Classic to 21st Century Class A trophy.”