Commercial Breaks

Law Firm Nears Lease Atop Bus Terminal

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 06 May 2008 19:34:22 -0400

High-powered law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison is in negotiations with Vornado Realty Trust for more than one-third of the tower planned for atop the Port Authority bus station, a move that, if cemented, would extend the legal establishment’s apparently inexorable drift westward from the white-shoe stronghold of midtown.

A source close to the negotiations confirmed that Paul, Weiss is in serious, though early, negotiations to take 500,000 square feet in the middle of the 42-story building slated to rise from a platform atop the seedy bus terminal. read more »

Big Manhattan Law Firm Exits GM Building for ... Downtown Brooklyn

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 06 May 2008 19:45:51 -0400

The largest tenant in the GM Building is relocating a portion of its operations from the gilded midtown tower to the decidedly humbler environs of downtown Brooklyn.

Weil, Gotshal & Manges, a global law firm with a New York staff of 1,300, has signed a lease for 35,000 square feet at Brooklyn’s 15 Metrotech Center, owned by read more »

Finally, Move-in Day at One Bryant Park!

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 06 May 2008 19:43:54 -0400

The trading floor at the new Bank of America tower at One Bryant Park got partially busy on Monday, three days after the building’s developer secured a temporary certificate of occupancy for Manhattan’s newest trophy tower. read more »

'Blood in the Water' Surrounds Elusive Macklowe

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 06 May 2008 19:35:51 -0400

Where’s Harry Macklowe?

Has the once mighty real estate titan taken a wind-powered voyage on his sailboat, Unfurled, to some mysterious locale still untouched by rumors of his catastrophic fall from the acme of Manhattan real estate? read more »

Bidding Deadline Extended for Prime Times Square Site: 'Every Major Developer in New York Has Expressed Interest'

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 20:22:46 -0400

Developers now have an extra month to prepare their bids for one of the last soft sites in Times Square—303 West 42nd Street.

Thomas Simmonds, the project manager of the site, said the sellers pushed the deadline back from April 30 to May 30 “unofficially,” thanks to the enormous interest in the space. read more »

SL Green Teams with Hard Rock on ‘Racino’ Pitch

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 18:51:09 -0400

Hard Rock, of Hard Rock Cafe fame, and SL Green Reality Corp. have together submitted a bid to run the Aqueduct Racetrack, the Queens running ground that has, over the years, been run into the ground.

Rock ’n’ roll and horse racing: it’s an unlikely marriage that just might work. read more »

The Economist Mulls Move, Maybe 'Very Far Downtown'

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 18:49:49 -0400

Letters to the editor in The Economist may run under the anachronistic and patriarchal greeting “Sir,” but The Economist is no media dinosaur. Exhibit A: Its New York presence, like Alvy Singer’s universe, is expanding. The Economist, sir, is on the commercial real estate market. read more »

International Retailers Plan Fresh City Spots

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 18:47:36 -0400

There’s really no need to travel to other First World countries at all anymore—unless, of course, you’re interested in architecture and landscape and other such trifles.

Hakkasan, the restaurant Time Out London called “a hidden Narnia of Oriental other-worldliness,” is scouting Manhattan locations for its first New World eatery. read more »

Journal Move Imminent? News Corp. Leases Big Space in Midtown

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 17:10:09 -0400

News Corp. has leased a huge chunk of space at 1185 Avenue of the Americas, right next to its headquarters. Perhaps to make room for the arrival of the Wall Street Journal in Midtown?

Since News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch purchased The Journal in December, he has reportedly discussed moving The Journal’s newsroom from the World Financial Center to Midtown by 2009. read more »

Newsweek Gets Cold Feet at 100 Church Altar

Dana Rubinstein — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 17:08:31 -0400

Newsweek may be reconsidering its long-planned move from midtown Manhattan to 100 Church Street, following months of negotiations.

“Newsweek did go out and look at some alternative stuff,” according to a well-placed source. “They still are focused on 100 Church, but the market has shifted a bit, and they still wanted to see what else is out there.” read more »