Normandy Real Estate Partners, a leading real estate operator and fund manager, announced a 15-year deal with Cornell University at 575 Lexington Avenue, where Cornell will expand their current presence at the property to occupy more than 182,320 sf.
The expansion – at the base of this Class A Manhattan office tower – represents approximately 20% of total occupancy. Normandy partnered with New York Life Real Estate Investors and Prudential Real Estate Investors on the deal.
“Cornell University is a distinguished institution that is synonymous with excellence and prestige, and their lease expansion and extension will help further stabilize the asset – and ensure long-term value for Normandy and our investors,” said Paul H. Teti, Senior Vice President and co-head of leasing at Normandy.
“Weill Medical College of Cornell University opted to remain and expand at 575 Lexington Avenue to continue to take advantage of the building’s stellar location and to benefit from the recent building upgrades and extensive capital renovations underway,” said Paul Glickman, vice chairman, with Jones Lang LaSalle.
“The Plaza District remains one of the most sought-after areas of Manhattan, and the trophy building is well served by mass transportation and a wide range of amenities. Normandy Real Estate Partners’ capital improvement plan at 575 Lexington Avenue includes a revamped lobby, new state-of-the-art infrastructure and a thorough update of the property’s retail spaces.”
This lease, which consists of a near 35,000 /sf expansion – comes on the heels of Normandy making substantial improvements to the building since acquiring the property last year, including renovations to the lobby, elevators, and the base of the building.
Paul Glickman, Mitti Liebersohn, Steven Rotter, Diana Biasotti, and Brittany Wunsch from Jones Lang LaSalle represented Normandy. The brokers for Cornell included John Cefaly, Michael Burgio, and David Berke from Cushman & Wakefield, John Adams from John Adams Company, and Albert Duryea from ITRA.
Additionally, Normandy also announced a deal with financial services firm Janney Montgomery Scott, which will expand their current space by 9,185 s/f, bringing their total occupancy to more than 31,400 s/f. Ken Rapp from CB Richard Ellis represented the tenant.
These two deals bring total year-to-date leasing at 575 Lexington Avenue to more than 213,700 s/f.
