The Teacher’s Retirement System of the City of New York (TRS), one of the largest pension systems in the United States, is renewing its lease and expanding the Member Services Center at its headquarters at 55 Water Street.
Savills Studley arranged the 20-year transaction on behalf of the organization.
TRS will now occupy 191,138 s/f of the 53-story 3.8 million-square-foot downtown office building. The organization will reside in a portion of the 18th floor, the 2nd floor and the entire 16th and 17th floors. The new lease enables TRS to remain in the building until the year 2039
As one of the largest downtown deals of Q4 2015 to date, Savills Studley was able to negotiate terms that will allow for capital improvements and renovations of TRS’ office space. The work will include a full build-out of the 18th floor, an upgrade to the member services area on the 2nd floor and a refresh of its entire space.
A Savills Studley team composed of Ira Schuman, Marc Shapses, Oliver Petrovic, Bill Montana, and Kurt Handschumacher, represented the tenant. The landlord, New Water Street Corp., was represented by Howard Fiddle, Evan Haskell, Brad Gerla, David Caperna and Mary Ann Tighe of CBRE. Asking rents were $58 per square foot.
“It was important to TRS that its space not only allowed them to better serve the needs of the members, but also made the most fiscal sense. We were able to achieve this by negotiating competitive rates, the aggregate of which is lower than what was previously budgeted,” Schuman said.
Shapses commented, “After searching the entire market, including a study of where TRS membership lives, we utilized TRS’ longtime relationship in the building to create a win-win for both parties. This transaction gives stability to the ownership while the tenant receives an enhanced office environment and the room to grow membership services.”
Added Howard Fiddle, a vice chairman with CBRE said, “TRS’s commitment to renewing and expanding its Member Service Center at 55 Water Street is just another sign of the long-term confidence that tenants have shown in the vibrancy and growth of Lower Manhattan and 55 Water in particular.”
