The American Language Communication Center signed a 65,000-sf lease at 229 W. 36th St. ALCC will relocate its Manhattan facilities, which are currently situated within the Hotel Pennsylvania at 401 Seventh Ave. A CBRE source tells GlobeSt.com that average asking rents at 229 W. 36th St. are in the mid-$40s per sf.

The CB Richard Ellis team of David Hollander and Sacha Zarba negotiated the 20-year lease on behalf of the building ownership, Real Estate Capital Partners. Howard Simson and Jarod Stern of Studley represented ALCC.

[IMGCAP(2)]ALCC plans to house classrooms and offices from the second through the sixth floor of the 12-story property. "In addition to the property's ideal location in the heart of the Penn Plaza District, the ownership's hands-on approach and responsiveness were instrumental in ALCC's decision to bring the school to 229 W. 36th St.," Hollander says.

The School of Visual Arts will be adding a new campus location at 335 W. 16th St. The fully accredited college offering undergraduate and graduate degrees, committed to a sublease totaling 54,000 sf at the property to meet the growing demand for additional classroom and office space. The source tells GlobeSt.com that the property is 100% occupied and that in February, average asking rent was around $45 per sf.

Mike Scimo and Henry Johnson of CBRE's Los Angeles office, worked closely with CBRE colleague Dirk Hrobsky from the firm's New York City operations, in arranging the sublease on behalf of the sublessor, ADT Security Services, a division of Tyco International. Henry Johnson and Mike Scimo co-lead an exclusive tenant representation account across the Americas for Tyco International, and all subsidiaries, including ADT Security Services. Neil Lipinski of Colliers ABR acted on behalf of SVA.

SVA inked a 14-year sublease for the entire, 54,000-sf, five-story building located at 335 W. 16th St., between Eighth and Ninth avenues. The college plans to house classrooms and offices for its undergraduate fine arts department.

In an unrelated transaction, SVA also committed to a 26-year sublease for 20,000 sf at 333 W. 23rd St., a two-story property, which holds two movie theaters. SVA plans to utilize the theaters for lectures and special screenings.

Kobre & Kim LLP, a litigation firm specializing in institutional plaintiffs' litigation and government enforcement defense, has doubled its presence here, leasing 40,000 sf at 800 Third Ave. The high-profile, boutique law firm previously occupied 20,000 sf in the property through a short-term sublease. The source tells GlobeSt.com that the building is 100% occupied. "If space were to be available, the average asking rent would be somewhere in the mid-$60s-per-sf range," the source says.

The CB Richard Ellis team of Ben Friedland and Sacha Zarba represented Kobre & Kim in direct lease negotiations with landlord, Joseph P. Day. "Kobre & Kim was able to avoid future risk by proactively renewing their existing space and securing a contiguous floor for expansion" says Friedland.

Sacha adds that the "transaction also allowed Kobre & Kim to preserve the investment they made on the sixth floor when they moved into the building three years ago." Kobre & Kim will house its practice on the entire sixth and seventh floors of the 526,124-sf, 41-story office tower located at East 49th Street. Built in 1970 and known as the North American Plywood Building, 800 Third Ave. is owned Joseph P. Day.

The CB Richard Ellis team of Dirk Hrobsky and Jon Schulman negotiated the long-term lease on behalf of Gaiam. Colliers ABR acted for the ownership. "Over the past few years, Gaiam has grown rapidly through the aggressive acquisition of companies that share its unique philosophy," says Hrobsky. "The space at 350 Madison Ave. provided our client with the ideal platform to continue to grow its brand." Asking rents at 350 Madison are around $90 per sf.

The Ms. Foundation for Women will be relocating its headquarters to the Forest City Ratner-owned MetroTech Center, from 120 Wall St. Suzanne Sunshine, VP of CBRE's Practice Group, along with CBRE's Bruce Surry, EVP, and Joan Meixner, SVP, represented the Ms. Foundation for Women. Mary Ann Tighe, CEO of CBRE's New York Tri-State Region, Keith Caggiano, SVP, Tim Dempsey, SVP, and Michele Freeman, first VP, worked closely with Joanne Minieri, president and COO of Forest City Ratner Cos., and MaryAnne Gilmartin, EVP of FCRC, in negotiating the 15-year lease. The source says that average asking rents at 12 MetroTech are $38 per sf.

Tighe says that "this transaction is a testament to Brooklyn's growing allure, specifically for nonprofit organizations. The economic incentive packages available for tenants relocating from Lower Manhattan, as well as the superb office space we have available at MetroTech, made this deal a win-win situation. In addition to the incentives attracting tenants from Manhattan to Downtown Brooklyn, the area also boasts one of the most comprehensive transportation hubs in New York City."

After analyzing its real estate at 120 Wall St. as well as its future requirements, the Ms. Foundation concluded that its present space was no longer cost-efficient. With offices spread through three separate floors and rents expected to climb considerably when its lease term was fulfilled, the organization made the decision to relocate to Brooklyn after forming a 13-person board and seeing the tremendous potential the move offered. The Ms. Foundation plans to relocate its corporate offices to the 26th floor of Twelve MetroTech Center in August. Twelve MetroTech Center is part of a 16-acre corporate campus known as MetroTech Center. The Center surrounds two acres featuring rotating art exhibitions, sidewalk dining, entertainment and cultural events.