Jones Lang LaSalle


BOFA GETS NEW LEASE
By STEVE CUOZZO
Realty Check


INSATIABLE Bank of America just scooped up three more floors at Douglas Durst's 1133 Sixth Ave., across the road from where Durst's and BofA's joint-venture One Bryant Park is rising on the avenue between 42d-43d streets.

The new, 67,000 square-foot lease, signed within the past few days, seems a drop in the bucket compared to the 522,000-foot chunk the bank recently took at its new, $1 billion headquarters, on top of 1.1 million feet it had earlier pre-leased.

But while the new building won't open until 2008, BofA plans to move immediately into the extra floors at 1133 Sixth.

"They already had two floors there, 39 and 40, which they inherited from Fleet," said Durst leasing chief Tom Bow. "Now they've signed for 17, 42 and 43 as well."

Online database mrofficespace.com lists the asking rent on the 17th floor as $58 a foot, and, in the tower-topping 42nd and 43rd, $70 a foot.

But how much is BofA paying at One Bryant Park, which it will jointly own with Durst?

After the bank originally signed for floors 2-24 - the deal that got the long-planned skyscraper out of the ground - Durst said he expected rents of $100 and up for the remaining, higher floors.
Two weeks ago, the bank added floors 25-36 and 51, the top. Asked about rent, Bow would say only, "the whole deal is very complicated," adding, "BofA did take the top of One Bryant Park. Rest assured we easily achieved Doug's objective."

Since BofA is a part owner of the tower, whatever it's paying is being paid partly to itself.
BofA was repped by Jones Lang LaSalle's John Ryan III along with JLL regional president Peter Riguardi.

BofA currently has around 2 million square feet in Midtown, including blocks at 9 W. 57th St., 40 W. 57th, 1673 Broadway and 1185 Sixth.

Meanwhile, work is speeding up on 1 Bryant Park. Its western half is going up first because "that's where BofA's mission-critical facilities will be, their trading operations," Bow said.