Law firm takes 100K sf in another big Atlanta lease

One of Atlanta’s largest law firms is relocating its headquarters for the first time in nearly four decades, marking the sixth major office lease in the city this year.

Morris, Manning & Martin has leased 100,000 square feet at Two Alliance Center, a 30-story tower, at 3560 Lenox Road Northeast in Buckhead, owned by Raleigh-based Highwoods Properties, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported. The new office will be smaller than the 130,000 square feet it leases at Atlanta Financial Center, at 5531 Roswell Road, where it has been since 1987.

The firm will become the largest tenant at Two Alliance Center, occupying four floors with rights to expand. The firm, which employs about 280 attorneys and staff, will also have its name displayed on the tower, known for its vertical crescent design. 

The building allows the firm to have the same number of employees in less square footage because it has a more efficient design, the firm’s managing partner Managing Partner Simon Malko said. The firm was looking for a more modern building, he said.

The move is in line with the flight-to-quality trend in which tenants have exited outdated office spaces for more modern, amenity-filled options.

“If you build a collaborative, exciting space, people will want to come to the office,” Malko said.

Two Alliance was built in 2008 and is within walking distance to upscale malls Phipps Plaza and Lenox Square, as well as a MARTA station, the outlet reported.

Sumitomo Corporation tried to sell the Atlanta Financial Center, the building Morris, Manning & Martin is exiting, and New York-based Nightingale Properties had a deal to buy the 1 million-square-foot building last year for $182 million, which would’ve been a loss for the seller. But a $53.6 million crowdfunding raise fell apart and investors requested their money back.

Atlanta’s office vacancy is high, at just under 30 percent. Like many other metros, it has struggled to find occupancy amid remote-work trends, high interest rates and tight lending. But office leasing is on a hot streak.

Five leases of at least 100,000 square feet were signed in the first half of the year, the most since before the pandemic. The largest was Piedmont Healthcare’s headquarters relocation to 164,000 square feet at 271 17th Street in the Atlantic Station neighborhood.

—Rachel Stone

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