Oppenheimer to Take 270,000 SF at Manhattan’s 85 Broad

July 19, 2011
By Nicholas Ziegler, News Editor

The Manhattan deals keep on coming. On Monday, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. announced that it inked a lease to occupy seven floors and 270,000 square feet at 85 Broad Street in lower Manhattan for a 15-year term. The 30-story, 1.1 million square foot Class A office property is owned by a MetLife subsidiary.

Oppenheimer’s deal comes hot on the heels of other high-profile signings in the NYC area, including a $372 million refi at 1285 Avenue of the Americas, and financial-services company Nomura Holding America Inc. leasing 900,000 square feet of space at Worldwide Plaza, both earlier this month. The recent movement in the industry was cited as a partial reason for the Oppenheimer deal, according to CEO Albert Lowenthal. “Oppenheimer has a long history in New York, and especially in Lower Manhattan,” he said. “We are proud to increase our operations here and be part of the ongoing revitalization of the area.”

The new office space, which is slated for occupancy in late 2011, will house Oppenheimer’s corporate headquarters and will consolidate its primary business lines, including its asset management; investment banking and trading; and capital markets divisions, in one location. Cushman and Wakefield represented Oppenheimer in the transaction; MetLife was represented by Jones Lang LaSalle.

The building saw its profile rise in recent years, as longtime occupant Goldman Sachs vacated in early 2010 and it became the largest block of unoccupied space in the Manhattan market at the time, according to a report by Crain’s. To that end, MetLife was pleased to sign another high-profile tenant.

“We’re excited to welcome Oppenheimer,” said Robert Merck, senior managing director and head of real estate investments for MetLife. “Having [them] reinforces 85 Broad’s prominent presence in lower Manhattan.”