Mizuho Consolidates NYC Offices on Avenue of the Americas

By Corina Stef

1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York City

Mizuho Financial Group-owned Japanese bank Mizuho signed a 148,000-square-foot lease at the Rockefeller Group’s 1271 Avenue of the Americas. The tenant will spread throughout part of the below-grade floor and the entire second and third floors, relocating its operations from three different offices located at 320 Park Ave., 1440 Broadway and 125 W. 50th St. The new space will serve as the bank’s U.S. headquarters. Savills Studley’s Mitchell Steir, Matthew Barlow, Steve Berliner and David Goldstein acted on behalf of the tenant, while the landlord was represented by CBRE’s Mary Ann Tighe, Howard Fiddle, John Maher, Sarah Pontius, Evan Haskell and Dave Caperna, who worked closely with Ed Guiltinan, Jennifer Stein, Yoshinori Nakamura, Taku Tanikawa, Yoko Yamada and Eden Jeon of the Rockefeller Group.

“With the continued expansion of our corporate and investment banking franchise in the U.S. and across the region during the last several years, strengthening our business and technology infrastructure to match our growing client footprint has become a critical necessity,” Mizuho Americas Head of Strategy John Buchanan said in a prepared statement. “Establishing 1271 Avenue of the Americas as our new U.S. headquarters will allow us to better serve clients by bringing together Mizuho employees from multiple office locations in one space, thereby increasing synergies, optimizing resources and enhancing our execution capabilities.“

$600 million redevelopment

1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York City

The 2.1 million-square-foot, 28-story building was constructed in 1951 and underwent a $600 million complete redevelopment conducted by architecture firm Pei Cobb Freed & Partners in 2016. The asset features a new glass curtain wall, HVAC and elevators, a restored lobby clad in Copacabana-inspired flooring, marble walls and Josef Albers and Fritz Glarner’s artwork.

Located in Midtown Manhattan within the Rockefeller Center, 1271 Avenue of the Americas is minutes away from Grand Central Station, Penn Station, Port Authority Bus Terminal and multiple subway lines. Neighboring amenities include parks, museums, hotels, theaters, restaurants and retailers.

Within the last year, the landlord signed more than 1 million square feet of leases, while 1.3 million of square feet are still vacant. The asset is anchored by Major League Baseball, which occupies six floors totaling 400,000 square feet. Other tenants include Time Inc., Fidelity Investments, The New York Times, Advent Capital Management and The Capital Grille.

Images courtesy of the Rockefeller Group