Cushman & Wakefield is getting a new office — but only a few blocks away.
The brokerage giant signed a 130,000-square-foot lease at Paramount Group’s 31 West 52nd Street, where it will relocate its New York office in late 2026, according to the Commercial Observer. It will also take over leasing duties at the 29-story Midtown tower.
Cushman will occupy floors 11 through 15, a stack of contiguous space it says will enable a more collaborative and modern office layout. It’s a return to 52nd Street after a 17-year run at Vornado’s 1290 Sixth Avenue (in which it occupied around 180,000 square feet); prior to that, the firm held offices at 51 West 52nd.
Details regarding the duration and asking rent were not disclosed.
Northeast regional president Todd Schwartz described the relocation as less about leaving 1290 than seizing the chance for a better footprint, one where internal staircases and a unified layout support a “people-first” design.
The firm tapped Perkins+Will to design the space, and its workplace innovation team is coordinating the buildout. CEO Michelle MacKay will be based at the location, which will also serve as a client showcase. Across the street, C&W staffers will have access to Paramount’s 1301 Sixth Avenue, including event and wellness spaces and the members-only Paramount Club.
The brokerage’s decision to stay in Midtown wasn’t incidental. Schwartz said the firm polled employees who expressed a clear preference to remain in the core — from Third to Seventh Avenue, and between Central Park and 42nd Street. With transit and client proximity top of mind, 31 West 52nd fit the bill.
Manhattan’s office market embraced the summer heat last month. Tenants inked deals for 3 million square feet in July, up nearly 11 percent from the previous month, according to a Colliers report.
The borough is on track for 40 million square feet of leasing activity by year’s end, a level not seen since the pre-pandemic heyday of 2019, per Colliers. Manhattan’s availability shrank to 15.2 percent, the lowest since January 2021. Sublet supply also continued its downward trend, hitting its leanest level in five years.
Read more
Paramount lands law firm tenant at 31 West 52nd Street
Summer surge: Manhattan office leasing swelled in July
Paramount under scrutiny for new undisclosed CEO payments
