Jonathan L. Mechanic and Melanie Meyers

The city’s commercial vacancy rate may be high but tenants are being rightfully choosy when it comes to office space after two years of a pandemic, if you ask Fried Frank’s Jonathan Mechanic and Melanie Meyers.

“The high-end market is very hot. Pricing is way up and there’s a flight to quality,” Mechanic said. “People are going to the higher-end buildings.”

Mechanic should know. He handled the legalese of leasing for East Midtown megaliths like One Vanderbilt and Project Commodore at 175 Park Avenue, a redevelopment involving the current Hyatt Grand Central, as well as several properties in Hudson Yards. He also sold the development rights of Central Synagogue and did a master’s lease on Lever House, giving the space some modern amenities including an outdoor deck.

But Mechanic is particularly bullish on 270 Park, a 60-story, Foster+Partners designed tower that will be JPMorgan Chase’s global headquarters and the city’s largest all-electric skyscraper.

“We were part of that from the very beginning,” Mechanic said. “We did not only the deal work for them but all the zoning work for them too.”

Meyers, a land use specialist, has been largely involved with transforming the Hyatt hotel into a modern mixed-use office complex. The building will feature a series of external terraces, and the location close to Grand Central Terminal remains unparalleled.

“It’s going to be a fabulous project,” Meyers said. “We really are pretty excited about how East Midtown has created opportunities for our clients for these properties.”

In addition, they’ve represented Related on most Hudson Yards matters. The Far West Side megaproject had its struggles during the pandemic, including when Neiman Marcus quit its 50-year lease after only 18 months. Now Fried Frank is helping fill the vacant space with offices. Two of its four floors are already leased and a third is under discussion.

“What hurt during the COVID era was retail, but we have additional people who are part of the Hudson Yards community,” Mechanic said. “We’re big fans of the resurgence of New York.”