From the Office to the Opera: Work in the Heart of New York Culture

The availability of two office floors at 1900 Broadway between West 63rd and 64th Streets, the largest in the building in over 45 years, offers the rare opportunity for a company to locate in a neighborhood equally known for high-quality residential units and the finest culture, dining and leisure in New York City.

The 44-story, 1,150,000-square-foot mixed-use 1900 Broadway currently offers two floors of 53,750-square-feet each, or a contiguous 107,500-square-foot block.

In addition to a flexible floor plate and enviable amenities, the building boasts its own restaurant row and is part of one of the world’s esteemed cultural complexes.

“It was built as part of the Lincoln Center Special Zoning, and it really is the fourth side of the Lincoln Center piazza,” said Lester Schwalb, VP/Director of Commercial Leasing at Ogden CAP Properties LLC, and the building’s leasing agent since 1985.

“When you’re standing in front of the fountains and you sweep across the vista of the NYC Ballet, the Metropolitan Opera in the middle and the Philharmonic, 1900 Broadway is directly across from Lincoln Center’s fountain.”

The mixed-use building includes street-level retail and restaurants, offices on floors 2 through 8 and luxury rentals above. The next office tenant will share the building with only two others—Sesame Workshop, creator of Sesame Street, and the Screen Actor’s Guild (SAG).

The sixth and seventh floors are shaped as a large triangle abutted by a large rectangle along 64th street, offering significant design flexibility.

“The floor plate itself is a function of the streetscape of Broadway,” Schwalb said. “You can have very heavy densification, and still have room for large common areas.”

The building’s owners, Ogden CAP Properties, the Milstein family, have meticulously maintained and improved the building, completing numerous capital improvement programs in the building in recent years to ensure that the facilities and amenities meet the evolving needs of tenants.

“About seven years ago, we did a massive facade improvement that ties the building architecturally with Lincoln Center,” Schwalb said. “We’ve upgraded our elevators, HVAC, sprinklers, the electrical system, security procedures, and completely renovated the building entrance and lobby.”

The width of Broadway and the low scale nature of Lincoln Center allow light to penetrate in an unexpected way for lower floors. The abundant natural light that hits the sixth and seventh floors, which also overlook Lincoln Center’s fountain, is unusual and a sought-after amenity in today’s workplace.

“Because it’s on Broadway and not in the middle of the Central Business District, the light on these floors is better than you could imagine,” said Schwalb.

Tenants also appreciate the attentive service. “Having come from a building where there were multiple commercial tenants, service wasn’t as quick as we would have liked,” said RoseAnn Badamo, SAG’s National Director, People Management and New York Administration.

“Here, there [have been] only three tenants, so there’s a difference. There has never been a delay in service here. The building’s staff is very easy to work with.”

And then there are the building’s amenities.

“There’s a gym in this building that has a pool, and it has amazing views of New Jersey and Central Park on either side,” said Badamo. “The yearly fee is reduced for commercial tenants, and many of our employees, including myself, take advantage of that.”

One especially attractive locational perk is that some of New York’s finest eateries comprise the buildings own restaurant row. Superstar chef Daniel Boulud helms three restaurants at 1900 Broadway: Bar Boulud, Boulud Sud and Epicerie Boulud. Non-Boulud high-end restaurants Cafe Fiorello and The Smith sit adjacent to the Boulud trio, so tenants can dine at a different restaurant every day of the week without ever leaving the building.

“When 1900 Broadway was built, due to special zoning, they intended to create a first-floor concourse that looked Parisian,” said Schwalb. “As a result, the building has a canopy over the lobby level, and that’s become a phenomenal restaurant scene. We have lots of outdoor seating all along the block front of Broadway, and the canopies go beyond that. People sit out there all the time. It’s a very high-energy restaurant scene that knits together the whole Lincoln Center environment. There’s no other building in New York that has this diversity and breadth of restaurants literally at its base.”

The surrounding neighborhood elevates desirability to another level with Lincoln Center and Central Park right outside.

“We find this location works perfectly for us,” said John Guzman, VP, Facilities Management, for Sesame Workshop. “We’re close to other nonprofit arts organizations like Lincoln Center and WNET, as well as major media organizations like ABC and Time Warner. We like being so near a creative hub that hosts many outdoor performances and festivals. The area is easily accessible by mass transit, with a relaxed, campus-like feel to it and top-notch restaurants and nice retail shops. Plus, Central Park is only one block away.”

Given all this, the neighborhood has everything a company’s employees could want or need in terms of culture, retail and leisure. An Apple Store, West Elm, a farmer’s market, Century 21 and Brooks Brothers are all within blocks. A classic live-work-play neighborhood, there’s virtually no need that can’t be satisfied within lunch hour walking distance.

For tenants seeking contemporary space in an especially convenient location, 1900 Broadway is a clear choice.