ABS Partners Real Estate Arranges Deal for National Workforce Development Company, Relocating Job Training Office to Historic Lee Building in Harlem
ABS Partners Real Estate announced it has secured a 7,000-square-foot lease for Grant Associates, a national, award-winning workforce development company, at Savanna’s 1825 Park Avenue, also known as the Lee Building. Grant Associates has leased space on the sixth floor of the recently renovated 12-story building in order to provide its employees and customers with an efficient and modern space for job training and workforce development functions.
An ABS Partners team of Andy Udis and Alison Miller represented Grant Associates. The building ownership was represented by a Cushman & Wakefield team of Mitchell Arkin, Myles Fennon and Omar Sozeksen, and a JRT Realty Group team led by Ellen Israel and Lauren Calandriello.
“We are excited to welcome Grant Associates to 1825 Park Avenue,” said Kerry Powers,Vice President of Savanna. “The property continues to attract tenants from a diverse mix of industries that see a value in establishing a location on 125th Street in Harlem. This dynamic, combined with Savanna’s capital improvements, continues to drive strong tenant interest.”
Savanna recently completed a comprehensive capital improvement plan for the property, including a newly designed lobby, entrance and retail storefront;refurbished bathrooms;new windows throughout;and HVAC and electrical upgrades.In addition, upgrades to tech infrastructure made 1825 Park Avenue the first-ever Wired Certified Gold building in Harlem. Key improvements to connectivity include multiple fiber providers, redundancy via fixed wireless connectivity from the rooftop and multiple fiber points of entry into the building, and additional riser capacity to support future ISP and tenant requirements.
Grant Associates’suite of workforce programs and services builds workforce capacity that inspires job seekers, supports local enterprises, develops industry sectors, and helps realize a community’s workforce potential.The firm works in active partnership with local government to tailor solutions that build and maintain workforce capacity.
“Grant Associates provides a valuable service to jobseekers and employers in New York City and as the firm continues to grow, leadership wanted to relocate its Harlem job training functions to an updated space while maintaining a presence in the neighborhood,” said Mr. Udis of ABS Partners Real Estate. “1825 Park Avenue was particularly appealing due to the recent renovations and the excellent transportation access. The modern, light-filled space at 1825 Park Avenue is easily accessible from locations across the five boroughs and it isa 30-minute subway ride to Grant Associates’ new FiDi headquarters, a deal we arranged for them in September 2018.”
1825 Park Avenue is situated in a prime location on the northeast corner of 125th Street and Park Avenue. It is adjacent to Metro North’s 125th Street stop and steps from the 4, 5, and 6 subway lines.The property has sought-after features, including vaulted 10- to 12-foot ceilings and sweeping southern views of the Manhattan skyline. The building also offers 11,500-square-foot floor plates.
Recent leasing activity at 1825 Park Avenue includes a 20,000-square-foot lease with Carver Federal Savings Bank on the top floor and part of the seventh floor, which allowed the firm to maintain its historic presence in Harlem where the bank was founded 70 years ago, as well as a 9,000-square-foot lease with NADAP.
About Savanna
Savanna, formed in 1992, is a vertically-integrated real estate investment manager based in New York City and focused on strategic property investments throughout the City’s five boroughs. The firm, led by Managing Partners Christopher Schlank and Nicholas Bienstock, pursues real estate equity and debt asset investments, including ground-up development and major repositioning projects. Savanna’s equity investments target value add/opportunistic returns by adding value through asset management and/or property development, redevelopment, and repositioning, deploying a team of more than 30 experienced investment, asset management, construction, and leasing professionals. Savanna also selectively invests in real estate debt instruments that have the potential to generate equity-like returns, including preferred equity instruments, high yield bridge and mezzanine loans, and B-notes. Since 2006, Savanna has invested over $4 billion in total capital across nearly 15 million square feet of real property.
About ABS Partners Real Estate
ABS Partners Real Estate is a leading New York City based real estate firm dedicated to building lasting real estate and professional partnerships. Our team maintains a focus in two areas: providing services which add value in leasing, investment sales, property management, construction management and advisory; and organizing opportunities for our clients to participate in the ownership of real estate.
