Hines secures 7 Bryant Park for new 470,000 s/f class A office tower

Hines, the international real estate firm, has secured approval to use the 7 Bryant Park address for its new, 470,000 s/f trophy office tower overlooking Bryant Park. The 28-story building, which will be located between West 39th and 40th Sts. on the site of the former 1045 Sixth Ave., was designed by world-class architecture firm Pei Cobb Freed & Partners. The class A tower is the only sizeable new office construction project in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. The naming announcement was made by Tommy Craig, senior vice president and head of Hines' Tri-State operations. "We are thrilled to be a new member of the prestigious Bryant Park community, which already includes a roster of prominent tenants such as One Bryant Park's Bank of America," Craig said. According to architect Henry Cobb of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, who designed 7 Bryant Park along with the firm's Yvonne Szeto, "The building was conceived in response to the extraordinary circumstance of its location at the corner of Bryant Park. The hourglass façade detail will be a lens through which building occupants can view the park with dramatic and alluring immediacy." The steel and glass tower will offer direct views of Bryant Park as well as the New York Public Library and other Midtown skyline landmarks. It will also feature 10-foot finished ceilings, full-height clear vision glass, two spacious outdoor tenth-floor terraces overlooking the park, and multiple top-floor opportunities, including the creation of a signature penthouse duplex space. The building is slated for LEED certification and will incorporate many advanced technology systems. Currently, Hines and its partner Pacolet Milliken Enterprises, Inc., have filed a building permit for the tower, and are working to complete various approvals for underground work with the MTA. CBRE is serving as the exclusive leasing agent for the building, with the firm's CEO for the Tri-State Region, Mary Ann Tighe, leading the team in marketing and leasing efforts.