GlobeSt.com: If you could boil the overall corporate real estate climate down to a few sentences, what would they be?

Vanella: The industry goes through cycles that lag behind the general business trend by roughly six months to a year. So in general terms we start our contraction or growth a bit late. We were beginning to do just that prior to September 11 and were finding a lot of corporations--including our own--getting into cost-containment or cost-cutting modes. Actually, my company was consolidating, but that was more a fallout of the acquisition than the economy, so it would have happened anyway. In the New York market generally, we're now experiencing a bit of both dynamics, in that we have companies that are rethinking their relocation decisions and some that are scrambling for space.

GlobeSt.com: How much of the cost-cutting and containment can be attributed to the general recession and how much to the specific events of last month?

Vanella: Who knows? There's really no discernible point where one takes magnitude over the other--with the exception of the industries that are most directly affected, such as the airlines.

GlobeSt.com: Let's take each dynamic individually. First the economy. The number of corporate layoffs has been huge, of course. What is that doing to real estate portfolios?

Vanella: A lot depends on the specific commitment to that space. If they're short of term, the opportunity is there to sublease, obviously. Otherwise it goes dark.

GlobeSt.com: To take off your Nacore hat for a moment, what is the situation with the consolidation at Chase?

Vanella: At the time of the acquisition, we had a number of leases ready to expire and this gave us the opportunity to reposition our portfolio in the tri-state area, including our move into 1.3 million sf in Jersey City.

GlobeSt.com: In terms of September 11, we ran a story recently about an IDRC symposium where the suggestion was made that corporate executives should reside in different buildings. What's your thinking on that?

Vanella: That's been the thought for a number of years, actually. And it's not a terrorism issue as much as it is simply good business sense.

GlobeSt.com: How do you think the attack will affect building security long term?

Vanella: Obviously, we will see a lot more discussion on building access. When a corporate real estate manager starts looking for space, you can bet that security will be brought up a lot earlier in the conversation.

GlobeSt.com: Turning to other issues, the trend over the past few years on the part of many brokers has been to act as strategic partners with the in-house corporate real estate executive. Can a hired gun work effectively on anything more than a single transaction?

Vanella: That's a really fine balance for any broker to achieve, and it's been my experience that services can range from being simply order takers to truly being a strategic partner with the corporate real estate department. That's a relationship that takes time and patience to develop--but working with a talented broker, it is possible and can be beneficial to both parties.