Silverstein Signs Major Tenant at 4WTC
Zurich American Insurance will take over three floors within the downtown Manhattan office tower.
By Gail Kalinoski
4 World Trade Center
New York—After months of rumors that it was looking to move its New York headquarters from One Liberty Plaza to new offices at 4 World Trade Center, Zurich American Insurance Co. and Silverstein Properties confirmed that the global insurance giant has leased space at the downtown Manhattan WTC complex.
Zurich plans to take over 132,000 square feet on the 52nd, 53rd and 54th floors of the 72-story, 2.3 million-square-foot tower starting in summer 2017.
4 World Trade Center has 2.3 million square feet of office space and retail at the street level and in the underground concourses that lead to the subway lines and PATH trains.
“New York City is a global insurance hub, and the entire metro area is a large and important market for Zurich,” Ed Lopes, regional executive for the East region with Zurich North America, said in a prepared statement. “This new location ensures that we retain our key talent and also remain in close proximity to our customers and brokers. We’re thrilled to stay downtown in one of the most exciting, vibrant and accessible neighborhoods in the world.”
Jeremy Moss, director of World Trade Center leasing for Silverstein Properties, led the negations for the landlord, along with the CBRE team of Mary Ann Tighe, Steven Siegel, Adam Foster, Steve Eynon, Evan Haskell, Robert Hill and David Caperna.
Zurich was represented by Martin Horner and Robert Romano of JLL.
The Zurich lease is the largest private sector relocation in Downtown Manhattan so far this year, according to Moss.
Crain’s New York Business reported in May that Zurich was considering taking space at 4 World Trade Center when its current lease for 170,000 square feet at One Liberty Plaza expired in May 2017. That news broke as Morningstar Inc., an investment research and reporting firm, had announced it signed a 10-year lease for 30,000 square feet on the 48th floor of 4 World Trade Center for its New York office and headquarters.
In July 2014, MediaMath, a global technology company, became the first private sector firm to lease space at 4 World Trade Center, where the main tenants are the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey and the City of New York with a combined 1.2 million square feet. Other tenants now include SNY, owned by Sterling Entertainment Properties, Time Warner and Comcast NBC Universal, which took 83,000 square feet for office and studio space; Hudson River Trading; Silver Suite Offices; Dixon Hughes Goodman; Padilla CRT and Syntactx.
“To date, the World Trade Center has leased over 6 million square feet of office space. Now with Zurich’s decision, the World Trade Center has attracted yet another storied name in international business,” Janno Lieber, president of World Trade Center Properties, said in prepared remarks. “With the ribbon-cutting on the WTC Transportation Hub in March and 300,000-plus square feet of retail set to open next month, momentum continues to grow.”
Silverstein Properties is also building 3 World Trade Center, an 80-story skyscraper set for completion in 2018 that will be anchored by GroupM, a media and advertising firm. The company completed 7 World Trade Center, a 52-story building which is fully leased, in 2006, and has plans to develop 2 World Trade Center, also expected to total 80 floors. Plans to finish 2 World Trade Center were put on hold after News Corp and 21st Century Fox decided not to move their offices downtown to the site.
Image courtesy of Silverstein Properties Inc. via 4WTC
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