NEW YORK CITY-Accounting firm Marks Paneth & Shron has signed for 85,460 square feet at TIAA-CREF’s 685 Third Ave., marking the first significant longterm lease at the building since the financial services firm bought the building from Pfizer for $190 million last year.

MP&S is expected to move to the 600,000-square-foot, 33-story office tower from current offices at 622 Third Ave. during the fourth quarter of 2012.

Colliers International Tri-State Region president Michael T. Cohen and vice chairmen Andrew Roos and Leon Manoff represented the accounting firm in the lease, while the landlord was represented by Robert Alexander, Howard Fiddle and Zachary Freeman at CB Richard Ellis.

“This is the first long-term deal in the building, since TIAA-CREF bought it, and I think they wanted to start things on the right foot,” Cohen tells GlobeSt.com. “There is a lot of uncertainty in the economic environment and they wanted to nail down a good tenant for base of the building and that’s what they did.”

Asking rents for the space were “mid-50s,” Cohen says. The firm is moving from space of comparable size at 622 Third Ave. But at 685 Third it will enjoy significant upgrades that the financial services firm is undertaking there, including a renovated lobby and a small publicly accessible park near the building’s entrance.

A spokesperson for TIAA-CREF tells GlobeSt.com that several factors make the building attractive. “685 Third's marquee location, proximity to mass transit and customizable floor plans make it an attractive location for many types of tenants,” the spokesperson says.

As for MP&S, it will also receive “a substantial work letter,” for the space, Cohen says.