With 95K-Foot Worldwide Plaza Lease, WNET Comforts Landlord

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worldwide plaza 1v With 95K Foot Worldwide Plaza Lease, WNET Comforts Landlord

825 Eighth Avenue

In yet another reason to feel warm and fuzzy about public television, WNET has signed a 95,000-square-foot lease, plugging part of the giant hole at Worldwide Plaza.

The 16-year lease marks a major step forward for the 1.7 million-square-foot tower, which has been sitting 40 percent vacant for more than a year.

George Comfort & Sons bought the building from Deutsche Bank last year, after the lender took it from developer Harry Macklowe when he defaulted on $7 billion in loans. Comfort got the building for a mere $590 million, after Mr. Macklowe paid $1.8 billion two years earlier, according to Crain’s.

Since then, it’s been unclear just how good of a deal the new owner got, as two of the building’s three major tenants are set to depart, leaving only law firm Cravath Swaine & Moore. However, WNET is the first of three large tenants expected to sign in the next year, sources told Crain’s.

WNET, which produces programs like Worldfocus and Bill Moyers Journal, had been trying to shed half its office space at 450 West 33rd Street, The Observer‘s Dana Rubinstein reported in October. At least for now, the public television station may not find its new home much less lonely than its former cavernous far West Side spot.

Asking rents in Worldwide range from $52 to $59.

The landlord was represented in-house by Matthew Coudert and Peter Duncan. Cushman & Wakefield‘s Charles Borrok and Barry Zeller represented WNET.

The New York Post first had news of the deal.

lkusisto@observer.com