505 Fifth Ave. nears full occupancy.

A number of pending leases at 505 Fifth Avenue are set to bring the building to full occupancy.

Completed in 2005 by developer Axel Stawski, the distinctive glass tower was immediately hailed as an architectural gem and drew tenants who may otherwise have to sought to consolidate on just one or two floors in a larger building instead of integrating vertically on a collection of 505 Fifth Avenue's boutique sized floors.

But in the debate of form versus function that was almost sure to arise in a building both so stunning and yet in many ways also unyieldingly eccentric, brokers say that when the novelty of the 505 Fifth Avenue began to wear off some tenants found certain aspects of Stawski's wild commercial office concept hard to digest.

While tenants might have been able to tame the sharp angles imposed on their space by the building's striking facade by overseeing the construction of their own offices, controversy began to surround the building's lobby.

Those entering through 505's glass doors for the first time are almost certain to do a double take at the featureless cavity in front of them. Completely blank, with track lighting panels that run along the fringes of its walls, floors and ceiling and that drench the space in flamboyant shades of color, 505 Fifth Avenue's lobby is an exercise in aggressive minimalism, dazzling to aficionados of the artistically eclectic but grating to tenants who prefer the staid aesthetics that most lobbies in the city aim to evoke.

Some brokers say that the lobby was a prime reason why the remaining four floors in the building have been empty for as long as they have. That vacancy however is about to disappear. American Capital, which already occupies floors 25-28, has signed a lease for one of the four floors, which are located on 17-20. CIT was rumored to be pondering an expansion as well but brokers say that it is tenants new to the building who will absorb the remaining space and not the financial firm, who is the building's anchor tenant. Perhaps 505's strangeness is a draw after all.

Cushman & Wakefield executive vice president Paul Glickman leads the building's agency team. CB Richard Ellis broker Doug Dolgoff repped American Capital. Neither could be reached for comment.