Office tenants consider breaking leases, battle landlords over rent payments

From left: Nicholas Bienstock, one of the heads of Savanna, and 100 Wall Street
From left: Nicholas Bienstock, one of the heads of Savanna, and 100 Wall Street

From the January issue:  It was something of a rite of passage for Lower Manhattan office workers just after Hurricane Sandy hit: Alone, or in small groups, they climbed dark stairwells holding flashlights in order to retrieve computers and files from their offices. Now, with the lights back on, many office tenants are gingerly stepping back into unchartered territory to reoccupy their spaces, which are not all ready for prime time. While 49 office buildings (with 35 million square feet of space) were closed after Sandy, all but about six buildings were expected to be opened by press time. But, as The Real Deal and others have reported, some are finding unpleasant realities — bad smells, mold, spotty heating and a lack of telephone or Internet service. [more]

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