CLEVELAND-Cliffs Natural Resources has renewed its lease by almost doubling its office space use at the 45-story 200 Public Square tower downtown. Harbor Group International LLC, the landlord, signed up the tenant for an additional 66,420 square feet, pushing the company’s space to 137,420 square feet.

The tenant is an international mining and natural resources company, and the largest producer of iron ore in North America. The lease brings the 1.2-million-square-foot tower to about 85% occupied, though Brian Boehmcke, VP of asset management for Harbor, tells GlobeSt.com that deals are now in the works to bring that figure up to 90% leased.

“Our building, one of the very few class A offices downtown, was originally built as the headquarters for British Petroleum. The building has fantastic infrastructure, amenities and finishes, we believe we outperform the market,” he says. Asking rates at the building are between $24.50 to $25.50 per square foot, Boehmcke says.

BP moved into the tower when it was built in 1987, after it took over Standard Oil. However, when BP purchased Chicago-based Amoco in 1998, it was only a matter of time before the company moved to the Windy City. Huntington National Bank moved into 100,000 square feet in the tower this year as a move of its regional headquarters.

Boehmcke says Harbor is pleased with the activity recently seen in the downtown office market. “We’re starting to see tenants looking to move from the suburbs to downtown, which has a lot going for it, including the new Medical Mart and the new (Horseshoe) Casino being developed,” he says.

Alex Jelepis with Grubb & Ellis Co. represented Harbor in the transaction. Andrew Coleman and Rob Roe with Jones Lang LaSalle represented Cliffs.