Clarendon Takes 83,000 SF at Times Square Tower

NEW YORK CITY-Clarendon Insurance Group Inc. has taken three full floors comprising 83,000 sf at Boston Properties’ Times Square Tower. The lease, which was brokered by Studley, includes a five-year delayed possession on approximately 27,000 sf of that space. Financial details of the lease were not released, however according to Studley’s second quarter office market and space data report, class A office space in Midtown is averaging $55.44 per sf.

Clarendon will nearly double its space when it moves from its present location at 1177 Avenue of the Americas, where the firm occupies multiple floors, into its new Times Square headquarters. The company, a US-based property and casualty insurance company whose parent company is Hannover Re, the fifth largest reinsurer in the world, will take possession of its new facilities in September. According to a Studley spokesperson, Clarendon’s projected growth required a larger facility and being in a new building with increased efficiencies was very desirable.

Clarendon was in the market for approximately one year and during that time briefly considered options Downtown and areas outside of the city, the Studley spokesperson adds. However, many of the firm’s employees live in the tri-state area and, as an employee retention measure, keeping commuting time to a minimum was a key objective. Therefore, the firm decided a Midtown address was the best fit for its needs.