By:  Marty Raminoff

Another law firm signed a new lease to move and expand its headquarters along Midtown Manhattan’s covered Sixth Avenue corridor.

As reported by the NY Post, law firm King & Spalding will be moving six blocks north to 1290 Sixth tower.  The 43-story office tower, owned by Vornado Realty Trust, is adjacent to Rockefeller Center and the iconic Radio City Music Hall.  The law firm, which boasts 23 offices across the world, had its headquarters nearby at 1185 Sixth Ave., at West 47th Street, for the last two decades.  The move will happen in 2025.

King & Spalding signed a lease for 175,000 square-foot at 1290 Sixth, planning to take over floors 13 through 15.  Vornado and the law firm didn’t comment on the deal and didn’t specify the price agreement.  The Post reported that the asking rent at the space had been $105 per square foot.  This will be a modest expansion over King & Spalding’s current 169,000 square feet of space occupied at 1185, which is a 42-story tower owned by SL Green.  The law firm originally had 236,000 sf at its current location but some years ago they subleased out some of the space.

The office tower at 1290 Sixth boasts 2.1 million square-feet of space, and is majority owned and operated by Vornado, with the Trump Organization holding a passive 30% stake since 2007, when it had struck a deal with Vornado chief Steven Roth.  The tower at 1290 is undergoing upgrades including a renovated lobby, triple-height glass curtain wall, the addition of “wellness” amenities, and full modernization of its infrastructure, achieving LEED Gold certification.  After the new lease, the behemoth tower only has some 200,000 square feet of space still available. 1290’s largest tenant is management firm, Neuberger Berman, which is occupying 400,000 square feet of space there.

Last week, another law firm also signed a lease to move along the popular Midtown Corridor.  Per the Post, law firm Paul, Weiss signed a mega-deal to take over 765,000 square feet of office space at Fisher Brothers’ 1345 Sixth tower.  This will be an expansion for Paul, Weiss, which was previously working out of 550,000 square feet of space at RXR Realty’s 1285 Sixth.

The 50-story skyscraper at 1345 Sixth, located between 54th and 55th, is lauded for its robust amenities, including town hall style conference capabilities, on-site food and beverage, coworking features, outdoor public plaza, an amenities floor, tenants’ lounge, wellness center, and an augmented reality art experience.  Fisher poured in some $120 million in 2021 for capital improvements and renovation of the lobby at the tower, which boasts close to 2 million square feet of space.

Paul, Weiss will take over the space at 1345 Sixth in 2025 and move in by 2027. “Law firms love the neighborhood,” commented CBRE’s Howard Fiddle, part of Fisher’s leasing team.  “The timing worked well,” Fiddle said, noting that the space at 1345 only became available as Alliance Bernstein’s lease was expiring. Fiddle noted that the building’s new renovations and amenities had a lot to do with luring in the law firm.  “It’s a 100% flight to quality,” Fiddle said, which proves “a building doesn’t have to be brand new” to attract first class tenants.