WNET Takes 95,000 SF in Midtown

NEW YORK CITY-In the second major leasing deal at Worldwide Plaza since a group led by George Comfort & Sons took over the 1.8-million-square-foot office tower at 825 Eighth Ave., public television network WNET is taking just under 95,000 square feet there. The 15-year deal entails WNET taking two of the 14 floors vacated last year by advertising agency Ogilvy & Mather.

Terms of the lease were not disclosed; asking rents at the property are reportedly in the mid- to upper $50s per square foot. WNET, the parent of public TV stations Channel 13 and WLIW, expects to move from its longtime home at 450 W. 33rd St. to 825 Eighth by year’s end. Another media tenant at 450 W. 33rd, the New York Daily News, announced last month it would relocate to a 100,000-square-foot space at 4 New York Plaza.

“We’re delighted to welcome WNET to the heart of New York’s entertainment district and one of Times Square’s most prestigious corporate addresses,” says Peter S. Duncan, president and CEO of George Comfort & Sons, in a statement. Duncan’s firm led the investment group that bought the property from Deutsche Bank in 2009 for a reported $605 million.

Cushman & Wakefield’s Charles Borrok and Barry Zeller represented WNET. Duncan and George Comfort EVP Matthew J. Coudert represented the building’s ownership.

The WNET deal follows the announcement in late May that WebMD signed for 50,000 square feet at 825 Eighth, up the street from its headquarters space at 111 Eighth Ave. In that earlier deal, Newmark Knight Frank's David Falk and Kyle Ciminelli represented WebMD, while also representing the online information provider in expanding from 20,000 to 45,000 square feet at its Atlanta location, 400 Colony Square.