Empire State Realty Trust Inks 400 KSF in Office Leases

1400 Broadway.

Empire State Realty Trust announced it has completed four separate transactions totaling 428,481 square feet at three of its office properties. The real estate investment trust inked two leases totaling 295,291 square feet at 1400 Broadway and an 81,996-square-foot lease at One Grand Central Place, both in Manhattan. It also signed a 51,194-square-foot lease at 100 First Stamford Place in Stamford, Conn.

Signature Bank completed a new, 15-year lease for 280,182 square feet of office space at the 919,405-square-foot 1400 Broadway in Midtown South. The bank has occupied space at the building since 2018, when it took 91,181 square feet. Signature expanded to 117,872 square feet just a few months later. The bank will now occupy 10 entire floors at the building.

Clarins USA also signed a new, 10-year lease for a 15,109-square-foot floor at 1400 Broadway. The French skincare company will relocate to the building from One Park Avenue.

The building owner was represented in-house in both transactions by Ryan Kass, along with Scott Klau, Erik Harris and Neil Rubin with Newmark. Signature Bank was represented by Michael Cohen, Andrew Roos and Howard Kaplowitz with Colliers International New York. Clarins was represented by Scott Weiss with Savills.

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iCapital Network inked a new, 12-year lease for 81,996 square feet of office space at ESRT’s 1.3 million-square-foot One Grand Central Place, located at 60 E. 42nd St. The financial technology firm had already expanded its occupancy at the building to 64,537 square feet in October 2021. The company originally leased 35,186 square feet in 2017 in its relocation from 441 Lexington Avenue. iCapital will now occupy four entire floors at One Grand Central Place.

ESRT was represented in-house in the transaction by Ryan Kass, along with William Cohen, Scott Klau, Erik Harris and Neil Rubin with Newmark. iCapital was represented by Lauren Crowley Corrinet, Alexander Golod and Christopher Hogan with CBRE.

In Stamford, United Rentals secured a new, eight-year lease for the entire 51,194-square-foot seventh floor at the 304,617-square-foot 100 First Stamford Place. The equipment rental company had been subleasing the space since 2013, when it relocated to the building from nearby Greenwich.

ESRT was represented in-house in the transaction by Jeffrey Newman and Kimberly Zaccagnino, along with James Ritman, Torey Walsh, Greg Frisoli and Janey Steinmetz with Newmark. United Rentals was represented by Ted Uzelac and Chris Armstrong of Fischer Co.

Office Market Strength

Manhattan remains one of the strongest office markets among the country’s gateway cities. The city posted a 12.8 percent office vacancy in December 2021, compared with a national average of 13.7 percent, according to CommercialEdge data. The city’s office vacancy rose just under 2.5 percent year-over-year from the 10.3 percent office vacancy recorded in December 2020.

Average asking rents for Manhattan office space have decreased slightly more than 13 percent, falling from $85.94 per square foot in December 2020 to $74.73 square foot one year later. The city’s office rents remain far above the national average of $31.74 per square foot.