Manhattans pandemic-pummeled office market is headed for a spectacular rebound — and not only landlords, but business advocates and eatery owners are thrilled.
Although the Manhattan office market hit bottom in 2023 with more than 20% vacancy rate, the short-term future looks rosier, according to a new report from national real estate technology platform VTS.
Its latest quarterly Office Demand Index (VODI) found that demand for space in the Big Apple rose nearly 40% in 2023 over the previous year — lifting demand to 75% of pre-pandemic times.
By comparison, office space demand grew by only an average 19.6% around the US. The New York City market is the nations largest by far with nearly a half-billion square feet. Runner-up Los Angeles has only 317 million square feet and much-in-the-news Miami a mere 41 million square feet, according to brokerage CBRE.
VTS chief strategy officer Ryan Masiello said its data tends to lead the market by six to nine months.
Our prediction is that this year, New York City will break 30 million square feet of total leasing, the highest since before the pandemic, he said.
New York City saw nearly 43 million square feet of new leases, expansions and renewals in 2019.
Deals made in 2023 totaled 26 million square feet according to CBRE, which was 11% lower than in 2022.
The VTS numbers dont reflect actual new leases and expansions, but rather the amount of space that companies are seeking.
Its data is based on lease proposals, company visits to “kick tires” at office buildings and other types of information VTS gets from its client landlords, which Masiello said constitute 80% of the market.
CBRE tristate CEO Mary Ann Tighe commented that the VTS data affirm what our own research is seeing and what our brokers feel on the ground.
Kathryn Wylde, president of the Partnership for New York City business-advocacy organization, said the findings were consistent with anecdotal evidence from our members, many of whom are re-upping leases or moving to newly renovated or brand new spaces.”
She noted, Financial and professional services industries, which are our major office employers and tenants, account for an out-sized share of the tax revenues that fund municipal services.
Keeping those businesses and their employees in the city are not just good for our economy, but essential for the quality of life across all five boroughs.
Several deals that were in the works last year actually got done this week.
Sources told The Post that Barclays Bank renewed its lease for 1.1 million square feet at 745 Seventh Ave. Evercore, an investment banking advisory firm, added 95,000 square feet at Fisher Brothers Park Avenue Plaza, lifting its footprint there to more than 500,000 square feet.
Meanwhile, Blackstone, Jane Street Capital and American Express are among top-class tenants reportedly looking for large blocks of space to move or expand in Manhattan.
Experts attribute the renewed Manhattan energy to growing confidence that return-to-office is gaining steam as well as to a wider sense that the city is no longer a ghost town nor dangerous except in a handful of areas.
Dan Biederman, president of the Bryant Park Corporation and the 34th Street Partnership, noted, Our subways and suburban trains are much more crowded than last year. Just today, I almost got knocked over trying to get to the turnstiles at the Rockefeller Center station.
A leasing boom would also be great news for restaurants in business districts.
Marc Packer, a partner in Avra Group which owns three large Midtown restaurants, called the VTS forecast extremely important for the health of retail/restaurant business and the basic ecosystem of the city.
Dino Arpaia, owner of Cellini on East 54th Street, said that it might bring more employees to offices on the two days in the week when he said there are sometimes zero people at his restaurant.
He said the return-to-offices trend hasnt helped parts of East Midtown as much as it has other areas.
Its still missing on Mondays and Fridays, he said.
Misiorowski told reporters that he anticipates missing about two starts and being ready to go after the 15 days. The IL move is retroactive to Thursday.
The right-hander took a liner to the shin off the bat of the Chicago Cubs‘ Seiya Suzuki in the first inning of his last start Monday. Later in the inning, after fielding a dribbler in front of the mound, Misiorowski’s knee buckled as he threw wildly to first and two runners scored.
The 23-year-old Misiorowski stayed in the game, pitching three more innings before coming out after 80 pitches.
Misiorowski is 4-1 with 47 strikeouts in 33⅓ innings this season.
In a related move, the Brewers recalled right-hander Logan Henderson from Triple-A Nashville, and he is expected to start against the Nationals on Sunday.
DENVER — The Colorado Rockies have put closer Seth Halvorsen on the 15-day injured list with a right elbow strain after he had to leave Saturday’s win over Pittsburgh.
Interim manager Warren Schaeffer said at the time the injury didn’t look good — following the right-hander’s exit after throwing five pitches in the ninth inning. Halvorsen leads the Rockies with 11 saves.
Colorado also recalled right-hander Nick Anderson and catcher Braxton Fulford from Triple-A Albuquerque on Sunday, and the Rockies optioned infielder Michael Toglia to Albuquerque.
The 25-year-old Halvorsen is 1-2 with a 4.99 ERA this year. He made his big league debut in August of 2024.
BRISTOL, Tenn. — It was a red flag for Major League Baseball at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night.
The Speedway Classic between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds was suspended in the first inning because of rain, soaking a record-breaking crowd for the first regular-season game in Tennessee. The plan is to resume the game on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
The first delay at the historic bullring of a racetrack came after the ceremonial first pitch featuring a pair of Hall of Famers in Johnny Bench and Chipper Jones, joined by NASCAR drivers Kyle Busch and Chase Elliott. The second with one out in the bottom of the first led to the game being pushed back a day.
Fans who stuck out the first delay of 2 hours, 17 minutes started heading toward the exits before the game was postponed with the Reds holding a 1-0 lead.
It was an unwelcome detour for the long-planned event mixing baseball and NASCAR.
“We’re going to suspend tonight’s game. … We are optimistic for a better weather forecast for tomorrow,” Michael Hill, MLB’s senior vice president of on-field operations, told Fox.
The rain made life difficult on the players before the suspension. A bat flew out of TJ Friedl‘s hands as he led off for the Reds. A pitcher seemed to catch his footing going to cover first base.
The Speedway Classic was announced nearly a year ago as part of commissioner Rob Manfred’s push to take MLB to places where baseball isn’t played every day live. MLB played a game at the “Field of Dreams” movie site in Iowa in 2021 and 2022. Games have been held in Alabama and North Carolina too.
Reds pitcher Andrew Abbott showed up Saturday afternoon at Bristol wearing a cutoff version of a NASCAR race suit. Born in Lynchburg, Virginia, Abbott said he wanted something to wear in for a special game.
“I grew up around NASCAR,” Abbott said. “Just went on eBay and found a couple options, and luckily that was the one that arrived in time. I had a couple of backups. I know who Rusty Wallace is too, so I actually do know the backstory behind it.”
Long before the fans departed in the rain, they were entertained by a 110-foot Ferris wheel along with food trucks, live music, pitching tunnels and batting cages. Fans also had a chance for photos with the Commissioner’s Trophy and Clydesdales outside the historic racetrack.
Inside, star Tim McGraw performed and was joined by Pitbull.
Before the weather moved over the area, players stood in the back of pickup trucks with their numbers emblazoned on the side and rode around the half-mile racetrack. Some used their phones to document the moment. For introductions, the Braves and Reds walked between a pair of cars decked out in Atlanta and Cincinnati colors.
Then the tarp came out as rain that had been falling around Bristol much of Saturday turned heavy and delayed the start.
The first delay led to the Braves switching starting pitchers. Spencer Strider, who grew up in nearby Knoxville, got a bigger ovation than Reds starter Chase Burns, who is from Hendersonville and played at the University of Tennessee. The Reds stuck with Burns despite the delay.
Strider warmed up. The Braves chose not to risk his third start in this situation coming off a second elbow surgery and turned to Austin Cox.
The rain stopped long enough to take off the tarp and start the game.
Michael Waltrip, who raced plenty at Bristol, restarted the festivities by quoting his brother Darrell: “Boogity, boogity, boogity. Let’s play baseball, boys!”
Atlanta went down in order in the top of the first inning. But there was another rain delay after Austin Hays hit an RBI single for Cincinnati in the bottom half.
MLB didn’t try to sell every ticket inside the speedway that drew 156,990 for the Battle of Bristol college football game in 2016. The track with a racing capacity of 146,000 could host 90,000 or more even with sections blocked off.
Officials announced Monday that more than 85,000 tickets had been sold, topping the previous paid attendance of 84,587 set Sept. 12, 1954, when Cleveland Stadium hosted the New York Yankees.
A batter has to clear 400 feet to hit anything out of center field, 375 in the alleys and 330 down each baseline. Pulling a ball down the line raises the prospect of a ball bouncing off the racetrack beyond the outfield wall.
“Honestly, my first thought: I can’t believe they did all this for one game,” Braves first baseman Matt Olson said of his first visit to Bristol. “To be able to set all this up, get a playing surface ready, set the stands up in order to have the proper viewing, it’s pretty incredible.”