Cohen woos second trader to upgraded 805 Third Ave.

It appears that Wall Street, where space is scarce, or the Avenue of Americas midtown corridor, where rents are pricey, aren't the only viable options for space users seeking Class A facilities for their Manhattan trading floor operations.

For the second time in a year, owner/ developer Charles S. Cohen has signed a long-term lease for more than a full floor at his 31-story office tower at 805 Third Avenue, at 50th Street, with a company planning to utilize most of the space for its trading operations.

This time the tenant is Poten & Partners, the global shipping and commodity brokerage firm, which has leased 30,000 square feet comprising the building's entire 19th floor and a portion of the 18th floor. Poten expects to relocate from it current headquarters at the Lipstick Building, 855 Third Avenue, to its new trading room facilities at 805 Third Avenue later this year.

"We're not only delighted to welcome this prominent company to our building, but we're extremely gratified that that marketplace has recognized 805 Third Avenue as a viable option for companies with trading floor requirements," asserted Cohen, who last year signed a similar leasing agreement with Toyota Tsusho America, Inc., that company's corporate trading arm in the United States. Toyota has its trading operation on the 16th floor of the building.

The allure of 805 Third Avenue to potential trading floor operators is not an accident.

In addition to recently upgrading the building's main lobby, atrium and common areas, Cohen also added a new tower for supplemental air conditioning specifically to meet requirements of prospective tenants with trading floors.

Those improvements, together with floor plates of 23,800 s/f and rents ranging in the mid-70's to 80's, has caught the attention of both the trading floor and real estate brokerage communities.

Michael Goldman, executive vice president of Studley, represented Poten in the long-term leasing transaction while senior vice president David B. Nevins represented managing agent, Cohen Brothers Realty Corporation.

Established in the 1930's as a ship brokerage firm by William F. Poten, employee-owned Poten & Partners presently has approximately 150 professionals and support staff in New York, London, Athens, Hong Kong, Perth, Guangzhou, Singapore. Over the years it expanded into commodity brokerage, primarily for petroleum products, and today shipping and commodity brokerage remain the two cornerstones of its commercial services.

In addition to 805 Third Avenue, Cohen's other signature New York properties include 623 Fifth Avenue, 135 East 57th Street, International Plaza at 750 Lexington Avenue, 3 East 54th Street, 622 Third Avenue, 3 Park Avenue, 475 Park Avenue South, and the D&D Building at 979 Third Avenue.

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