McGraw Hill is closing the book on its Downtown Chicago office space.
The educational publishing company confirmed it wants to sublease its 59,000-square-foot office at 120 South Riverside Plaza, Crain’s reported. The company had signed a long-term lease at the Ivanhoe Cambridge and Callahan Capital Partners-owned building two years ago. About 200 employees work there.
McGraw Hill’s move follows a wave of subleases in the Chicago office market in recent months, amid the work from home revolution spurred by the pandemic. Available office sublease space Chicago reached a record 4.6 million square feet in the third quarter, according to MB Real Estate. The total office vacancy rate climbed to just under 16.6 percent, the highest it’s been in a decade.
“Given our successful shift to remote work and space needs during the pandemic, we’re evaluating our physical footprint and exploring whether we will reduce the amount of space in this office,” a McGraw Hill spokesperson told Crain’s.
The company’s lease is set to expire in 2029; the firm told Crain’s it might retain some of its office space at that location. It had moved to the city from the 120,000-square-foot office it had leased in suburban Burr Ridge. [Crain’s] — Sasha Jones