Eleven Times Square, the recently completed 1.1-million-square-foot office and retail tower in Midtown, has been granted LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, developer SJP Properties announced today. The building, located at the intersection of Eighth Avenue and 42nd Street, incorporates the latest green technology in its design, including an advanced air filtration and ventilation system, as well as a glass curtain wall exterior that reduces heat gain and allows in natural light. “Our original vision for 11 Times Square was to create a commercial building that would effectively raise the bar for sustainable construction and design…” said Steven Pozycki, CEO of SJP Properties. TRD [more]

From the December issue: It’s the home of major media companies such as Viacom, the New York Times, Condé Nast, Reuters, Bertelsmann and Universal Music Group; broadcast studios for ABC, MTV, NASDAQ and others; headquarters of Morgan Stanley and law firms such as Proskauer Rose, Skadden Arps and Cravath Swaine & Moore. One-quarter of all hotels in Manhattan are there, along with Broadway theaters and some of the best retail in the world. And, oh, tens of millions of visitors annually come by.

So before the world’s eyes turn to Times Square for New Year’s Eve, it seemed like a good time to consider the state of the office market in the city’s most famous district. After all, some 200,000 people work in Times Square, 70 percent of them in finance and creative fields.

Let’s use the Times Square Alliance’s borders for the district: 40th Street to 53rd Street between Sixth and Eighth avenues, as well as Restaurant Row (46th Street between Eighth and Ninth avenues). [more]

The Real Deal columnist Michael Stoler sat down with the major players behind 11 Times Square, the glassy new building by SJP Properties, for a recent installment of “The Stoler Report.” Developer Steven Pozycki was on hand to discuss his plans for the property, which earlier this year scored its first major tenant — law firm Proskauer Rose — in one of the largest relocation deals of 2010. Since then, leasing “activity has been terrific,” Pozycki said. Ronald Sernau of Proskauer, which took 400,000 square feet at the 1.1 million-square-foot tower, called it “an awesome, breathtaking building,” adding that the firm would be moved-in by Jan. 15. To watch the entire show go to www.stolerreport.com.

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1 World Trade Center, Robert Futterman

Robert Futterman, founder and chief executive of the Robert K. Futterman & Associates retail brokerage, has gone full speed ahead on his new advisory role for the World Trade Center project, according to the New York Times. Futterman said his firm is helping the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey determine what kind of retail mix would work best for the site. So far, no retailers have committed, and Futterman said he’s still exploring options with the Port Authority. “We’re working under confidentiality in terms of names,” Futterman said. “But you can imagine, if it’s a half-a-million-square-foot regional shopping center, it’s all the household names. You’ll probably have something hipper than any shopping mall.” Also on Futterman’s plate: the vacant retail space at 11 Times Square. [NYT]

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From left, Lee Feld and Bruce Mosler (credit: Kaufman Center) and 1285 Sixth Avenue (credit: PropertyShark)

In the third-largest leasing deal of the year, global advertising group BBDO Worldwide signed a renewal lease for 360,000 square feet at its headquarters at 1285 Sixth Aven [more]

Bank of America is looking for as much as 1 million square feet of new office space in Manhattan, even as it gets comfortable in its brand new LEED-certified eponymous mammoth at 1 Bryant Park, the Post reported. The bank, which is looking to replace the roughly 1 million square feet it has scattered amongst some older Manhattan buildings, including 1185 Sixth Avenue and 114 West 47th Street when their leases expire, has put out requests for proposals with landlords in Midtown and Downtown. Sources said the bank is looking for space with similar features to 1 Bryant Park, which it co-owns with the Durst Organization. That means two likely contenders are SJP Properties’ new 11 Times Square in Midtown, where 500,000 square feet is still available, and the rising 1 World Trade Center, in which Durst recently acquired a minority stake. Condé Nast recently signed a letter of intent to anchor the building, rejuvenating what was once a derided project, and Bank of NY Mellon is also reportedly looking there. Cushman & Wakefield’s Tara Stacom, who is representing the building, declined to comment. [Post]

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From left, 11 Times Square, 320 Park Avenue, 1 Bryant Park and CBRE’s Peter Turchin

The
downturn has sharply reduced the premium rent asked by landlords of
about two dozen of Midtown’s [more]

Joseph Harbert

Segments of the commercial leasing market improved sharply in Manhattan in the second quarter of 2010,
led by large office deals such as 11 Times Square and New York City’s
largest retail lease ever at 666 Fift [more]

Stuart Eisenkraft, an executive vice president at CB Richard Ellis Global Cities, successfully negotiated terms for law firm
Proskauer Rose to occupy 380,000 square feet as an anchor tenant at 11 Times Square, in what may be the largest relocation deal for a commercial tenant this year, according to the New York Observer. The relocation deal marks the end of a long search by the building’s owner, SJP Properties, and reverses suspicions by real estate experts that the still-vacant, 40-story tower had become a casualty of the country’s economic collapse. For Proskauer Rose, which
leases more than a dozen offices spaces in four continents, the deal provides visibility that the company had lacked as a tenant at 1585 Broadway, while also taking advantage of a multimillion-dollar subsidy from that building’s owner, financial firm Morgan Stanley. As the future occupier of approximately 40 percent of 11 Times Square, Proskauer Rose’s name will be advertised across the entrance to the building, while its employees will work on the glass-encased, ultra-modern middle floors. The deal took several years to complete, due to complex leasing issues, including a renewal option for
Proskauer that Morgan Stanley hoped to avoid. [Observer]

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The office leasing market in Manhattan was mixed last month with a decline in overall vacancy rates that pointed to an improvement but at the same time average asking rents continued to slide lower revealing continued weakness, a new report rele [more]