Manhattan office tower owned by billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Global Holdings reaches leasing milestone

The office tower at 99 Park Ave. in Manhattan is 98% leased. (CoStar)

In the latest sign of the flight-to-quality trend in U.S. office markets, a Park Avenue tower in Manhattan that’s owned by billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Global Holdings landed a major bank tenant to increase leased space at the building to 98%.

The four-star office building at 99 Park Ave., located just south of Grand Central Terminal and between 39th and 40th streets, is being outfitted with a speakeasy and shared conference center as part of a $30 million overhaul.

Amalgamated Bank, the largest union-owned bank, signed a 94,045-square-foot, 15-year deal at the 26-story Midtown East office tower, Global Holdings said in a statement Monday. Global Holdings is the international real estate development and investment firm founded and led by Ofer.

The bank’s lease is the 99 Park building’s largest tenant deal ever, the owner said.

The transaction that took most of the available office space at 99 Park comes as professional services firms and other employers with the financial resources available gravitate toward top-quality office buildings across the country, and most notably in New York. Buildings near transit hubs with modern updates and appealing amenities have led Manhattan’s leasing as companies invest in attractive workspaces to get their employees to return to the office.

Amalgamated Bank plans to relocate from 27 Seventh Ave., between 25th and 26th streets, and will occupy a portion of the ground floor and the entire second, third and fifth floors of the 600,000-square-foot 99 Park, Global Holdings said. It bought the property in 1990.
Global Holdings is giving some $13.2 million in tenant improvement allowances with an effective rent of about $64 per square foot plus electric service, according to CoStar data.

The tower’s overhaul will include a lobby with a facade redesign and new amenities including a conference center, a speakeasy and an entertainment lounge with bowling alley and golf simulator, Global Holdings said in December. Designed by Vocon, the renovation of the property, originally designed by Emery Roth & Sons, is expected to be completed in 2026.
Brokerage reports have shown new or renovated properties with appealing amenities and nearby transit hubs commanding a bigger share of leasing volume.

With Amalgamated Bank’s lease, the building is 98% leased after it inked over 220,000 square feet of deals in the last five months alone, including the over 45,000 square feet by strategic advisory firm Geller & Co. and international children’s apparel company Garan doubling its footprint at the property. Metropolitan Bank in the fourth quarter signed a 15-year lease to expand from 55,200 square feet to 81,979 square feet.

For the record Daoud Awad and Chris Kraus from JLL represented Amalgamated Bank. Craig Panzirer and Alex Radmin from Global Holdings, and Paul Glickman, Diana Biasotti, Kristen Morgan and Harrison Potter from JLL represented Global Holdings.