Abrams Garfinkel Margolis Bergson Latest Firm to Flock to 1430 Broadway

The law firm will move from 237 West 35th Street to the building most likely sometime in January, according to a Newmark (NMRK) Grubb Knight Frank pair that serves as the building’s exclusive leasing agents.

The two—NGKF Senior Managing Director Kenneth Kronstadt and Associate Director Rick Kramer—said that multiple factors make the building alluring for law firms.

“The answer is that the building lays out very well for attorneys and accountants because there are a lot of windows available for offices, yet there’s a lot of depth for open area workstations,” Mr. Kramer said, when asked about the phenomenon. He added that competitive rents and proximity to transportation are also draws for the firms.

“The Grand Central shuttle is a block and a half away,” he said, “so it makes a lot of sense for attorneys.”

The law firm will occupy the entire 17th floor of the building when it moves. Still, with Abrams and recent transplant Brandt Steinberg & Lewis, the tenant roster remains diverse.

“We have a garden variety of tenants,” Mr. Kronstadt said. “We have architects, engineers, accountants, attorneys, non-profits, pension fund companies, insurance companies and advertising companies.” He added that another law firm friendly space is coming up in the first quarter of 2013—this one on the 18th floor.

Asked about the building’s vacancy rate, Mr. Kronstadt said that it was zero even before the recent leases were signed because space is aggressively rotated. “This building is usually 100 percent leased,” he said. “What we do is we rent spaces here that we know are becoming available in advance. Like the Abrams space on 17th—that tenant is vacating in October. We leased that in August. So we seem to be ahead of the curve here in terms of renting.”

Larry Haber, from Colgate Real Estate Advisors, represented Abrams in the deal. Mr. Haber didn’t return a call seeking comment about the lease in time for publication.

cgaines@observer.com