CENTURY CITY, CA—The leasing team at Watt Plaza has closed two lease deals for a total of 22,600 square feet of space within the twin 23-story office tower complex encompassing 900,000 square feet in the heart of Century City.

Lease highlights include the following:

• The leasing team renewed a contract with 1^st Century Bank for approximately 19,500 total square feet in Watt Plaza's North tower. The lease terms were extended for three different spaces: the bank branch and private banking center on the first floor, along with office space for the bank's corporate headquarters on the 14^th floor. The leases represent a total consideration of almost $7 million and will expire concurrently in 2024. The tenant, who has been located at Watt Plaza since opening in 2004, was not represented by a real estate broker in the transaction.

   

“We're excited to announce the extension of our lease through 2024. Watt Plaza has been our home since we opened our doors in 2004 and we're pleased to continue this relationship,” said Alan Rothenberg, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of 1^st Century Bancshares, Inc. “This lease extension further establishes our presence in Century City, along with our commitment to be the premier community business bank serving the Westside of Los Angeles.”

The lease with Ford was the result of a recently launched speculative suite program at Watt Plaza that enabled the company to move into the space immediately. Last year, the Watt Plaza leasing team demolished the entire vacant 2^nd floor and built out two 3,000 square-foot spec suites that feature stone flooring in the reception areas, built-in reception desks and glass conference rooms.

“We are thrilled to continue our relationship with 1^st Century Bank and are pleased to welcome Ford Global Brand Entertainment division to Watt Plaza,” said Kathy McKay, Vice President of Leasing at Watt Plaza. “We are seeing many tenants who prefer the turn-key experience and appreciate the ability to move into new space immediately, which explains the success of the spec suite program we launched in 2012. As a result, we look forward to designing and delivering two additional spec suites by spring of this year.”

Watt Plaza has set itself apart throughout the years as a leader in environmental sustainability, technology and customer service. The recipient of the 2011 Outstanding Building of the Year Award, Watt Plaza was the first office building in Los Angeles to receive the prestigious Gold LEED certification in the “Existing Buildings Operations and Maintenance” category, and the first Class-A office space in Los Angeles to replace all urinals with water free technology.

Watt Plaza was represented by Kathy McKay and Jamie Bergantz, Director of Leasing, in all transactions.