Law Firm Cohen Weiss & Simon Moving Across Third Avenue
By Lois Weiss April 26, 2023 3:20 pm
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Law firm Cohen, Weiss & Simon is moving to 17,771 square feet on part of the 12th floor at Vornado Realty Trust’s 909 Third Avenue, Commercial Observer has learned.
Cohen, Weiss & Simon is currently across the street at 900 Third Avenue, where it has 18,245 square feet on the 21st floor, according to a source with knowledge of the deal.
The length of the lease is unclear but asking rent at 909 Third ranges from $60 per square foot on the lower floors to $75 per square foot on the upper ones, the source said. The only remaining space is the entire 10th floor, which features about 30,000 square feet and has an asking rent of $62 per square foot.
Jason Perla and Josh Gosin of Newmark represented the law firm while Vornado handled it in-house via Glen Weiss, Edward Riguardi and Ryan Levy.
Cohen, Weiss & Simon prides itself on “protecting working people,” according to its website. The firm’s practice areas include representing labor unions and employee benefit plans across a wide range of industries, as well as individuals for certain employment litigation.
Sources said the attorneys appreciated the capital improvements made to 909 Third including adding a new Third Avenue Plaza, lobby storefronts, lobby ceiling and lighting, along with new destination dispatch elevators and facial recognition turnstile systems.
The 1.3 million-square-foot modernist building features a waffle-like pattern on its façade. The building was developed by Laszlo Tauber in 1968 on a long-term ground lease and was designed by Emery Roth & Sons in collaboration with Max Urban. Interpublic Group is the main tenant, leasing more than 300,000 square feet including its executive offices.
The building’s approximately 900,000-square-foot tower is set back on base that holds a United States Post Office facility of roughly 500,000 square feet on a long-term lease that pays around $1 million per year in rent.
During the pandemic in 2021, the ground lease was sold for $192 million by the 601W Companies to an entity tied to Colonnade Management, which is led by Columbus Properties CEO John DiMurro.
Newmark and Vornado declined to comment through their spokespeople, while Cohen, Weiss & Simon did not immediately respond to messages.
